Shipwrecked
by Angel Spirit
Summary: When Tori wins a cruise trip for six she invites Shane, Dustin, Hunter, Blake, and Cam to come with her, but a storm ruins their plans. Now shipwrecked, stranded, and separated, can they survive? Slash pairings inside. On Hiatus.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers Ninja Storm-if I did, they'd have continued the story plot line, as I personally think that it was one of the best plots they had!  
  
Author's Notes: I don't know if this kind of plot has been done before- but...*shrugs* if it has then oh well, and if it hasn't, then I'm giving it a try. It deals with the Ninja Storm Rangers (personally, my favorite season) in a situation that I've had fun playing around with while I was writing this up...oh the possibilities of what one can do as an author! ^- ~ Anyway, I'm not a new author, but this is just my first shot at writing PR fanfic...so...let me know what you think, okay?  
  
Rating: PG13  
  
Warning: There is slash involved within this fic...so I suggest that if you don't like the thought of male/male pairings, then you should leave now or forever hold your peace-you've been for warned. :P  
  
Pairings: Tori/Blake, Shane/Dustin, Hunter/Cam  
  
Summary: When Tori somehow wins a cruise trip for six, she manages to convince Shane, Dustin, Hunter, Blake, and even Cam to come with her. But they didn't expect a horrible storm to ruin their plans...leaving them all shipwrecked. Stranded and separated, can they survive without their powers?  
  
Shipwrecked  
  
Author: Angel Spirit  
  
Chapter I: Vacation Plans  
  
Tori had never been so excited in her life. Her smile reached her bright blue eyes as she walked into Storm Chargers to meet her friends for a training session that afternoon...though, she knew that with the news that she had to tell them, that she doubted they'd be able to concentrate much. She knew she wouldn't be able too.  
  
Gently fingering the tickets in her jean coat pocket, she said hello to Kelly-who looked to be going home for the evening, and joined Dustin at the front counter, who looked like he was just starting to shut down the cash register so he, Blake, and Hunter could go home. He looked up when she came up and leapt onto the counter, sitting on it and giving him a big grin- one that he returned.  
  
He chuckled as he tried to push her off as he put the money away into the cash bag that would go into a safe back in Kelly's office.  
  
"You know, you're the only one who Kelly will let away with doing that-who doesn't work here I mean." All Tori did was giggle and nod.  
  
"Yeah, I know-but according to Kelly I'm here so much I could practically work here." Dustin only nodded in agreement.  
  
"So why don't you?" That comment, coming from Blake Bradley-and the moment Tori heard his voice, her smile grew even wider as she slipped off the counter and he pulled her in for a hug.  
  
"You're early-we're not done closing up shop yet." He told her as she eyed him mischievously when she pulled away from his hug.  
  
"I know I'm early, but I'm early for a reason...I've got some great news- and I'm not sure how much longer I can contain it-but I want to wait until we get to Ops before I say anything as it might involve all of us." The boys only looked at each other and shrugged, as Dustin finished what he was doing and headed back to Kelly's office.  
  
"Dude, is the floor done Blake?" Hunter asked, coming up behind him and nodding a hello at Tori, who nodded back, and Blake groaned.  
  
"No...I've still go the back portion to finish." He muttered, as Hunter smiled and put a hand onto his shoulder as he steered him toward the direction he was supposed to be at.  
  
"Then stop flirting with your girlfriend and get back to work so we can get a move on and get outta here!" The blonde ordered, as Blake threw him a playful glare, muttering something underneath his breath that sounded like 'she's not my girlfriend', and Tori only chuckled at the 'yet' that seemed to somehow be thrown in there-though she knew that Blake probably didn't think that she had heard it.  
  
"And are you finished with the bike that Kelly wanted you to work on and finish today for the guy who owns it that's coming in tomorrow to pick it up?" Dustin asked, coming out of the back and locking the office door as he wiped his dirty hands on a rag. Hunter grinned and gave him the thumbs up sign.  
  
"Yeah dude, it's totally done." Dustin nodded, and then smiled a knowing smile.  
  
"Yeah, but did you put it away properly? Is there a cover over it?" At this reminder, Hunter smacked himself in the forehead as he mumbled something about how he knew he had forgotten to do something, and then headed back to the garage. Tori was having a hard time not laughing when Shane knocked on the locked door, and Dustin let him in.  
  
"Dude, are you guys finished in here yet?" He asked, as Dustin nodded as Blake was coming back who put an arm around Tori's shoulders.  
  
"We're waiting for Hunter." Dustin explained to Blake, who's eyes seemed to light up.  
  
"He forgot to do something?" The brunette nodded as Blake grinned when Hunter came back in, looking a bit sheepish.  
  
"And here you were playing me with the 'I have everything done but you don't yet' stage...what did you forget to do?" Blake asked as the five of them headed out, and Hunter gave his brother a sheepish grin.  
  
"I forgot to put the cover over the bike-no biggee, but still something that Kelly would've nailed me for in the morning...so let's get to Ops so that way Tori here can tell us her big secret." The four of them nodded, Shane only looking a bit confused as Dustin punched him playfully in the shoulder.  
  
"Tori came into Storm Chargers looking all excited and told us she had a big secret that she wasn't going to say until all of us were present and accounted for." Dustin explained to his friend as Shane only nodded.  
  
"Then let's go-before we're late-and we know how Cam and Sensei hate it-"  
  
"When we're late." The other's chorused with him as they all headed for Tori's van.  
  
~***~  
  
About a half an hour later, the Ranger team were found sitting around Cam's computer, with Cam's seat facing outward toward the other's.  
  
"So Tori, what's your big news?" He asked, having sensed her excitement from the moment she walked in.  
  
Tori grinned and finally brought out what she had been playing around with in her pocket for the better part of the half hour, and held them up for everyone to see.  
  
"Don't ask me how, but somehow, I won tickets for a cruise-for six. The cruise is a couple of weeks from now, so we have time to get ready-I figured that I'd invite you guys to come with me, because you're the only ones I'd want to spend two weeks on a cruise line with." The other's looked excited-Cam looked apprehensive.  
  
"I don't think all of us should go-I think that at least one or two of us should stay behind in case if Lothor causes any trouble." He said, trying to explain his sense of reasoning, but the other's only shook their heads as Hunter put a hand on his shoulder and gave it a light squeeze.  
  
"Ah, come on bro...it'll give you some time out of Ops, isn't that what sensei always wants for you? Besides, your dad can monitor things from here, and if there is any trouble, he can have Cyber Cam contact us...we've got our morphers and our new transporting abilities, so it shouldn't be a problem. Think of it as a vacation." The other's looked pleadingly at Cam, some of them-like Dustin-giving him their best puppy dog eyed expression.  
  
Until Cam sighed and shook his head as he took off his glasses and used the tail end of his Ninja uniform to clean them. When he put them back on, he had made his decision.  
  
"Oh, alright...but only because I know if I was the only one who stayed behind, I'd never hear the end of it from my father." The Rangers cheered, and Tori gave Blake a big hug-that Blake looked completely taken surprise by, and Hunter chuckled at the expression on his younger brother's face when the surprised look was replaced by a grin as he returned the hug.  
  
Cam only shook his head and went back to the computer before ordering them to start their practices for the afternoon...in which Hunter somehow managed to get him involved in, as he wanted to learn one of the newer moves from him that he had used in their last fight against one of Lothor's goons. Cam had only sighed and gave into Hunter's pleading, leaving Cyber Cam on the watch.  
  
~***~  
  
The two weeks had passed by quicker then any of them could've thought. They'd had a few monster attacks, but nothing too major. Nothing enough to have them cancel the trip because of worries over Lothor attacking. In fact, the day before when they were packing up and getting ready to leave, it was quiet-almost to quiet according to Cam, who was hanging out with Hunter. Blake had gone with Tori to get a couple of last minute things- leaving the two alone in Ninja Ops.  
  
"It's strange that Lothor hasn't really attacked much this week." Cam mused, as Hunter only shrugged as he sat backwards in the chair next to him.  
  
"Maybe he's planning on taking a vacation as well?" He asked, and Cam flashed him one of his rare grins...a grin that Hunter sometimes wished that he could see more of.  
  
"Somehow, I doubt it...my Uncle wouldn't be quiet if he knew that we were leaving. Trust me, he'd find some way of stirring up trouble. I don't know Hunter-I feel kind of funny leaving for two weeks...if it were two days I think I'd be okay with it." Hunter only sighed and put a hand on Cam's arm, making Cam look at Hunter instead of the computer screen.  
  
"Look Cam, even your dad said that he wanted you to take this trip with us- I mean come on-don't you think as Ranger's we deserve a small vacation from protecting the earth? And as you said nearly two weeks ago when Tori told us about this trip, your father and Cyber Cam will monitor for anything-and if there's any problems, they'll contact us. Dude, you've got nothing to worry about-except to finish packing." Cam chuckled.  
  
"Yeah, you're right, I do need to do that." He said as he stood and Cyber Cam appeared to take his place as he walked back to his room with Hunter in tow.  
  
"Don't tell me you're bringing that ugly red and dark green shirt that you always wear when you hang out around here-you're not, are you?" Hunter asked, with a small playful look of horror in his eyes, but a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. All Cam did was snort and grin.  
  
"It's not ugly."  
  
"Yes, it is." Hunter replied teasingly, as Cam protested throughout the afternoon that the shirt wasn't as ugly as Hunter kept on saying it was. In the end though, Cam secretly put the shirt back into the closet. He didn't know why, but for some reason he really wanted to look his best on this trip-be it either because he'd be around actual people for a full two weeks, or because he'd be spending a lot more time with Hunter, he wasn't too sure.  
  
But the spending a lot more time with Hunter, sure did sound appealing...  
  
Or so, that was what he was thinking when he finally turned the lights out to go to bed that night.  
  
~***~  
  
They were supposed to catch the six am flight to Florida and then their cruise would leave from there around three...or so that's what was supposed to happen.  
  
As it was, the Ranger's plane was delayed due to bad weather in some parts of the country, and so they had to wait in the airport for two hours. Now, one would probably think that spending two hours would be boring...however, that's not what Dustin was thinking when Shane and Hunter had grabbed him and Cam and decided to 'check out' some of the shops-or, in other words, make fun of the strange people shopping in the shops.  
  
Dustin had to admit, that he had a pretty good time-until a security officer was called and told them as politely as he could to go back to where their designated waiting area was...and that he hoped not to catch them again. Hunter and Shane were chuckling as Dustin hung out behind them with Cam who only shook his head. Was it just Dustin's imagination, or was Cam trying to hide a smile?  
  
So Dustin poked Cam in the ribs with his elbow, and grinned at him-and actually received a grin back in return. He was taken by surprise for a moment, but then he relaxed.  
  
"Did you actually enjoy watching Hunter and Shane get into trouble?" Dustin whispered to him, as the dark haired teen next to him only smirked and shrugged.  
  
"They had it coming for them-I knew they'd get into trouble eventually. It was only a matter of timing...hey, there's a coffee stand-let's see if Shane and Hunter are up for some." It sounded good to Dustin, and a few seconds later the four were placing their orders, as Hunter placed one for Blake, and Dustin placed one for Tori-knowing that the two of them probably wouldn't be to thrilled if they came with Starbucks coffee and hadn't gotten them any. And besides, Dustin knew Tori's order by heart.  
  
So she was thrilled when they came up and he handed her a the tall double shot mocha that he'd gotten for her. Blake seemed happy as well-and no one got into trouble...Cam was even quiet about what happened, and hadn't told Blake about the security guard situation...which, Dustin knew that if Blake found out that Hunter had gotten into trouble, he'd start bagging on him, and Hunter wouldn't hear the end of it.  
  
By the time they had finally gotten on their flight, Tori was worrying about them being to late. It took Dustin and Blake to calm her down enough...and eventually she fell asleep during the flight with her head on Blake's shoulder...Blake was sitting right in front of Dustin in the middle seat, and Hunter sat on Blake's right next to the window, as Tori sat in the aisle seat on Blake's left.  
  
Behind those three, sat Dustin, Shane, and Cam-Dustin in the center as Blake was, Cam on Dustin's right and behind Tori, and Shane behind Hunter and on Dustin's left. For the most part, it was a peaceful flight. However, Dustin thought that it was just his imagination when he thought he saw someone who looked like Marah stand up to get something down from the luggage compartment.  
  
He blinked twice, and then nudged Shane, knowing that he'd feel really stupid if it was really just an illusion. The Ranger's knew how badly he had fallen for Marah-and how long it had taken for him to eventually get over her. The last thing he needed now, was for them to think that he wasn't really as over her as he had told them that he was.  
  
"Dude...look over there up in front, at the girl standing up...does that...does that look like Marah to you?" Dustin whispered frantically as Shane sighed and gave him a strange look.  
  
"Dustin..." He said in a warning tone of voice, but Dustin shook his head as the girl looked over her shoulder as though she were looking for someone- and Dustin could've sworn up and down and on his own Morpher that it was Marah.  
  
"No...dude, I swear that looks like her!" Hunter, who had heard the commotion turned his head slightly and gave Dustin a 'what's up?' look, and Dustin pointed to the girl who was just starting to sit down as Hunter managed to get a good look at her before she finally did-Blake had also fallen asleep, and Cam was dosing as well.  
  
"So, what about the girl? Yeah, she's cute Dustin...but..." Dustin shook his head at Hunter and sighed...none of them would believe him no matter how hard he tried. He just couldn't get the feeling to go away that that was really Marah.  
  
"Nothing, never mind man...go back to your headphones." Hunter only shrugged and continued to listen to his CD player as Shane gave Dustin a look of concern.  
  
"Are you okay Dustin? You haven't brought up Marah in quite awhile...so why mention her all of a sudden? I thought you said that you were totally over her." Dustin sighed angrily, knowing that he'd get this from Shane-so he brought up his carry on bag and ruffled through it until he found his own CD player and slipped on his headphones, giving Shane the 'I don't have to talk about it look' that he knew the Red Ranger and the other's were accustomed to seeing from him by now, and he turned on his CD player, falling asleep to Linkin Park...  
  
And not being woken up until Shane was gently shaking him awake, telling him that they were about to land.  
  
When they did, Hunter and Shane had four groggy friends to lead out of the plane...but even Hunter had to do a double take at the girl that Dustin had pointed out...and now that he thought about it, there was something distinctively familiar about her...and her friend who sat next to her as well. Hunter bit his lip, thinking that he was only imagining it, and continued to lead his brother and Tori out of the plane and into the Florida airport...from there they'd get their bags and a shuttle would be waiting to take them to the ship...their cruise. It was part of the package ordeal that Tori had won.  
  
Within a matter of minutes they'd managed to grab their luggage and head out to the designated shuttle area, finding theirs wasn't very hard. By the time they'd sat down in it, Blake, Tori, Dustin, and Cam were a bit more awake then they were when they had first gotten off the plane.  
  
"How long will it take us to get to the cruise line?" Hunter asked Tori, who shrugged as they watched while a few more people got on-including the dark brown haired girl and her blond haired companion who Hunter-and Dustin- had seen earlier on the plane. Hunter frowned, suddenly feeling nervous.  
  
"...only know that we should be there before four pm...Hunter? Are you okay?" Tori asked, as Hunter shook his head, and grinned at Tori, giving her a thumbs up sign.  
  
"Oh yeah, I'm cool...I'm going on vacation, why wouldn't I be okay?" He asked her, and she only laughed as she put her head on Blake's shoulder again when the shuttle took off. Hunter smirked at his brother and crossed his arms over his chest, shaking his head. If he didn't know any better, he'd say that Blake was already starting to enjoy this vacation.  
  
I wouldn't be surprised if Blake and Tori were officially together by the time we come back home. Hunter thought, as he continued to watch the scenery until they got to the ship. When they reached the pier, Hunter gave a low whistle of approval, as did Dustin.  
  
"Wow...now I'm really glad that I pleaded Kelly for this two weeks of vacation time..." Blake murmured, as Tori smiled.  
  
"Of course, it did help you slightly when I showed her that the tickets were actually real and that you just weren't pulling her leg for extra time off." Blake chuckled at this as they got off the shuttle...and about two and a half hours later had boarded the cruise line, and had found their rooms by the time the ship had set sail.  
  
"So this is it...it's official...the Power Rangers are taking a vacation!" Shane exclaimed, as he punched the air excitedly.  
  
"So guys...what do we do first?" Tori questioned as she came in with Blake. They were paired up in three's in the room. Blake, Hunter, and Tori shared one room, as Cam, Dustin, and Shane shared the other.  
  
"Let's just look around the ship first...later we can figure out the activities and stuff-isn't there a dinner tonight?" Cam asked Tori as she nodded.  
  
"Yeah, there's a dinner...I think it's kind of an introduction dinner, with dancing and stuff-a fun one from the sounds of it. I'm not sure how fancy it is so I don't know how we're supposed to dress or anything like that." She murmured, blushing a little as the others just smiled at her and Blake took her hand and gave it a squeeze.  
  
"Maybe we can find one of the ships tenants and ask them...I'm sure someone who works on board has to know." Tori nodded at him as Blake nodded at the other's.  
  
"I think Tori and I are going for a walk...if you guys don't mind...why don't we meet back here in a couple of hours?" He suggested, and Hunter and everyone else nodded, giving each other knowing smiles that Blake pointedly ignored. He knew that Hunter already knew that he was practically head over heels in love with Tori. And if Hunter had figured him out, then that meant that the other three probably weren't far behind him. All he had to do, was to get the courage to actually tell Tori how he felt about her...or, if he got lucky, maybe she'd tell him first. From what he had heard from Shane, it seemed as though Tori felt the same way about him.  
  
"So, where do you want to go Tor?" He asked, using a nickname that he'd become too fond of-but she didn't seem to mind. All Tori did was shrug as her eyes continued to look around.  
  
"Why don't we go up top? I want to see the view..." Blake nodded, as he steered her in that direction...like she needed any steering, he thought-as it was the direction she was already heading in.  
  
~***~  
  
"Is it just me, or is it obvious that your brother totally likes Tori?" Dustin asked Hunter. The four of them had stayed behind, trying to figure out what they wanted to do...And, as Cam pointed out, they had two weeks to explore the ship and do stuff.  
  
"Nah, it's not just you dude...trust me, my little brother's in love...if only he could tell her." Hunter replied, and Cam snorted and shook his head as Shane, Hunter, and Dustin shared mischievous looks.  
  
"Uh-uh...no way...you guys are staying out of their love life's...no playing match makers, deal?" All they did was smile and nod-Cam didn't see the finger's that were crossed behind their backs however. And Hunter promised himself that his little brother would be with Tori by the time they got home...he'd make sure of it. He knew that Tori made Blake happy- and Blake made Tori happy in return. He just wondered how two people could be so stubborn and not admit that they were in love...to Hunter, it didn't make any sense-not yet anyway.  
  
"Actually, I kind of want to explore around the ship and slowly make my way up to the top deck." Dustin mused aloud, as Shane suddenly agreed with him.  
  
"Yeah...that sounds like a plan. I'll come with you if you want the company." All Dustin did was nod and stand, and offer Shane a help up-that he gladly took as he winked at Hunter and Cam when they headed out a few minutes later.  
  
"See you two in two hours." He said as he led Dustin out...and then there was a blissful silence. Hunter grinned at Cam and stretched out on the bed where his dark haired friend was sitting cross legged on.  
  
"So dude, it looks like it's just you and me." Cam snorted.  
  
"Oh yippee...so what is it that we're going to do?" He asked, waving a hand around the cabin they were still in, realizing that everyone else had gone off-and they were still sitting there.  
  
"We could find a good movie on TV." Hunter said, pointing out the fairly good sized TV that they had in their room, and Cam laughed.  
  
"Hunter! We can watch TV any day back home...come on, let's go do something." The blonde grinned and stood, stretching.  
  
"So what is it that you had in mind?" He asked, and Cam chuckled as he stood up as well.  
  
"Why is it that I'm the one who has to come up with the ideas around here?" Cam muttered as Hunter grinned again and started to walk out of the room.  
  
"Because you're the smart one...you figure it out." When he finished saying that, Cam chased him out of the room, pausing only to make sure that he had the key to the door and that their door was locked-and then finished chasing him the rest of the way up the stairs.  
  
~***~  
  
With the two hours nearly up of them having to meet the others, it found Blake and Tori above deck, enjoying the sunshine and the sound of kids-and teenagers-splashing around in the pool not to far away from them. Tori sighed and stared down at her morpher, as though daring it to go off.  
  
"What, you think that by staring at it, it'll magically call us into action and ruin our trip?" Blake asked, as Tori chuckled and leaned a little closer into him as he wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her close.  
  
"I'm hoping that doesn't happen...knock on wood." She murmured, and Blake grinned as he glanced at his watch and sighed.  
  
"You know, we should go and meet back up with everyone else-dinner is in an hour or something like that, and besides we did tell them two hours." Tori nodded as Blake led the way back down to their cabin. Along the way though, they passed by two girls-who looked almost exactly like Marah and Kapri. Tori did a double take as the blonde one smirked at her, giving her the peace symbol sign before they disappeared around the corner. Immediately, she grabbed Blake's shoulder, who rose a questioning eyebrow at her.  
  
"What's up Tori?"  
  
"Didn't you just see those two girls?" She asked quietly and Blake was giving her the 'you're crazy' look as he shook his head.  
  
"No, I didn't see two girls...are you okay?" Tori blew out a breath of frustration before grabbing Blake's hand and shaking her head at him.  
  
"I must be going crazy or something...I just thought that I saw Marah and Kapri...just a second ago...maybe I've been doing too much Rangering." She muttered, as Blake chuckled and squeezed her hand.  
  
"Yeah, well...that tends to happen to the best of us." Tori nodded.  
  
They were the first ones back, and the other's came back shortly thereafter...Dustin looking a little on the pale green side, and Shane, who had his arm around his shoulder, kept on sending him looks of concern.  
  
"Dudes, I don't think that Dustin is taking this whole cruise experience too good at the moment...I think we're going to skip on dinner." He said, and at the mention of food, Dustin looked like he was ready to throw up, and Tori gave him a sympathetic look as she reached out and gently squeezed his shoulder.  
  
"You're probably just seasick Dustin...Shane, do you really want to stay and look after him? One of us can do it..." She offered, but Shane only grinned at her and shook his head as he started to steer Dustin back into their room.  
  
"Nah...you guys go on and have some fun...bring me something back to eat, will you?" The others nodded as Shane shut the door gently behind him, and Cam turned to Hunter and sighed.  
  
"Great...now I'm sharing a room with a seasick Dustin...what else will I have to put up with tonight?" Hunter smirked at Cam's question.  
  
"Sitting next to me at dinner, as I'm positive that Blake and Tori will want to sit next to each other." Cam groaned.  
  
"I've already spent the afternoon with you Hunter-chasing you all over the ship while you played your hide and seek game-"  
  
"Until I scared you half to death." Hunter's smirk grew into a grin, and Cam only shook his head.  
  
"No, you didn't scare me-I was already freaking out because I thought that I had seen Marah and Kapri on this ship...too much Rangering." Cam muttered, as he and Hunter were waiting for Blake and Tori-Blake had said something about needing to go to the bathroom, and Tori had wanted to change. She came out though, right as Cam said something about the to much Rangering.  
  
"What was that Cam?" The two boys stared at her for a minute, and she eyed them back in return, before rolling her eyes.  
  
"What?" She asked, feeling irritated by their stare, including Blake's, who had joined them.  
  
"Well...you...you're doing it again." Hunter said, not quite sure what else to say as Blake took Tori's hand again.  
  
"You're looking like a girl again is what Hunter is trying to say I do believe-and there's nothing wrong with that! Bro, face it...she's a girl, not a guy, no matter how many times she hangs out with us, she's not going to like, magically transform into a guy." Tori chuckled as Hunter rolled his eyes and playfully smacked his younger brother along the shoulder.  
  
Tori was wearing a light aqua colored T-shirt with a low V-neck, and a wrap around aqua, purple, and dark blue skirt, as well as a pair of white sandals to complete the outfit.  
  
"I think I'm going to check on Dustin...you guys can head on upstairs  
if you want to." Tori mused, as she knocked gently on Dustin's,  
Shane's, and Cam's door before going in, winking at the other's who  
stayed outside.  
  
"I'll wait for her Hunter, if you and Cam want to go up and save us a spot?" Blake suggested, and Hunter grinned.  
  
"Okay-come on Cam, let's get out of here." The two departed as Blake decided to duck back into the room for something else he knew that he had forgotten, and that Hunter nor Cam had thought of either-a camera.  
  
~***~  
  
"How's he feeling?" Tori asked, a few minutes later as she saw Dustin lying in bed, looking absolutely miserable as he had his head resting against Shane's upper chest, who was going through the TV stations to find anything good on. Shane jumped, startled at Tori's question as though he hadn't heard her come in, and Dustin just looked like he was ready to be sick again.  
  
"Tori...it's not...what you think?" He finished off meekly as Dustin rolled over and used the trash can to heave into as Shane gently rubbed his back, sending Tori a sheepish look as she only smirked and crossed her arms over the other.  
  
"I was wondering when you guys would eventually slip up-or tell us, one way or the other." Shane sighed in relief.  
  
"So...you're okay with...us?" He asked, motioning between him and the still heaving Dustin as Tori smiled.  
  
"I've been okay with it since I believed that there was something going on between you two...and just so you know, I'm almost positive that everyone else will be alright with it too, once you guys tell them...personally, I think that Hunter's starving for attention from Cam lately-I wouldn't be surprised if they were a couple by the end of this trip." She said, winking mischievously at him as Shane only smiled.  
  
"And what about you and Blake?" She grinned back at him as Dustin made himself comfortable again, waving at Tori to acknowledge her presence for a half a second before closing his eyes and burrowing his head back into Shane's chest.  
  
"What about me and Blake? You think there's something between us?" She asked a little too sweet and innocently, as Shane laughed.  
  
"I don't know, what do you think Tori?" Tori chuckled.  
  
"I don't know-honestly...I...I really like him, I do...and speaking of Blake, I'd better go back out because he's waiting for me-I'm positive that he didn't go up with Hunter and Cam to dinner. I'll be back later with some food for you Shane...do you ummmm...want anything Dustin?" She asked, but Dustin had already fallen asleep, and Shane grinned at her.  
  
"Maybe if you can get a bottle of water, and if they've got anything like chicken broth or something up there?" Tori nodded, as she slowly backed her way out of the room.  
  
"Okay...take care of him Shane." Shane nodded at her as he pulled Dustin a little closer, who had started to shiver, and then as an afterthought, also pulled a blanket up around him.  
  
"I will."  
  
Stepping out a moment later, she saw that Blake was indeed still waiting for her, and flashed her the all too charming smile of hers that always made her want to melt whenever she saw it. He extended his hand out to her, and she gladly took it.  
  
"What do you have there?" She asked him, pointing to the item in his other hand. Blake grinned at her again as he held it out for her to see, and she saw that it was the camera that Blake had just barely remembered to pack- she remembered that she had asked him if he had had it, and he had to go dashing back into the apartment that he and Hunter were renting out. She chuckled at the memory.  
  
"A camera...the one you thankfully reminded me to get. Which, I thought would come in handy tonight. How's Dustin feeling?" He murmured as they made their way to the Dining Hall, where dinner would be that night.  
  
"He's...feeling lousy actually, look's miserable...but Shane's taking good care of him." She implied, as Blake chuckled.  
  
"Am I interpreting that as I think I am? So who won the bet?" Tori giggled as she shook her head.  
  
"I don't think any of us won the bet as to when Shane and Dustin would actually admit that they were together-or get together. I'd have to double check the betting list when we get back to our room." Blake snorted.  
  
"I'm surprised you didn't keep it on you to keep on checking to see if your date was the winner...what're we going to do with the money that got pooled in for it, if no one won anything?" Tori thought about it as they entered the dining room, and then gave Blake a wicked smile.  
  
"Keep it going for when Hunter and Cam get together?" All Blake did was give her a wide smile as he squeezed her hand.  
  
"You, are a genius." He told her, as she smirked and saw Hunter and Cam sitting down at a table not so far away, and waved at them as they headed in their direction.  
  
"I know." She replied, knowing that she would have to probably tell Shane and Dustin now about the bet, and that it had changed for whenever Hunter and Cam would get together-she had the feeling, that her two best friends would probably not be very happy if she and Blake kept the money to themselves.  
  
TBC 


	2. Storm Front

Disclaimer: I don't own them.  
  
Author's Notes: Wow! I wasn't expecting to get so many reviews on my first chapter with my first PR fanfic...thanx you guys, you're too awesome! ^-^ I just saw the ep Looming Thunder the other day, and there were so many Shane/Dustin hints in there that I was practically ready to fall out of my seat. I wanted to smack Shane for yelling at Dustin half the time! And there was one part when they were standing so close together, I was like 'so go ahead and kiss already!'...but of course we all know that would never happen...but hey, that's what writing fanfiction is for! ^-~ Anyway, I'm so glad you guys like this...so here's chapter II for you all...enjoy...  
  
I know this chapter seems long, but here I'm gonna reply to some of the reviewers...just because some of them I couldn't help but reply too!  
  
Prinzessin- I saw your review and it made me just smile throughout the whole day...and yes, of *course* Shane and Dustin have to be paired up, along with Hunter and Cam...we can't have it any other way, *can* we? (Well, as I've said before, there *are* so many ways one can pair up all the cute guys in PRNS...but we all know the main pairings! It's still fun to play around with the different possible pairings though *Mischievous look inserted here*) ^- ~ I *love* your fics...between you and Tsukino Akume, I decided to give writing PR fics a try. And can I add a request here for you to update Just a Day soon? Totally cute with Cam taking care of a sick Hunter...anyway, thanks for cheering me on!  
  
Tsukino Akume- *Grins madly*, yes someone else to add to your dark little corner of Shane/Dustin slashiness... (I couldn't help myself! :P this was begging to be written) ^-~ of course I *do* have you to partly blame, as it was *your* fics who got me hooked on those two being paired up in the first place...*^- ^* But, it's all good...more Shane/Dustin in this just for you...  
  
Weesta- Ah, yes, I know...Shane taking care of Dustin...a good role for him, don't you think? ^-~ And thanks on the vote of confidence, I wasn't too sure if I had everyone's character persona in the right place, as when I started writing this I'd only seen *some* of the PRNS eps...but fell in love with it after I saw just one ep. Don't know why, I guess because this season is kind of different from the others and it caught my eye-I'm glad it did! Slashiness abound! But now that I'm seeing more and more of the eps, I'm getting more and more into it! And don't worry, we'll find out what Kapri and Marah are up to in this chapter, plus as I told Tsukino, more Dustin and Shane goodness as well.  
  
eXtreme eVolution- Thanks dude! Here's more of the story for you...and I hope you like this chapter as much as you liked the last one...  
  
HyDrOmAtIc- Your first slash story? And you're liking it? ^-^ Good!-makes me know that I did something right along the way ^-~ and I hope you keep on reading! And even though I'm a big fan of slash, I agree with you on the Blake and Tori pairings...just watching those two interact throughout the series makes it a definite that they should be together!  
  
Rating: PG13  
  
Pairings: Tori/Blake, Hunter/Cam, and Dustin/Shane  
  
Summary: When Tori somehow wins a cruise trip for five, she manages to convince Shane, Dustin, Hunter, Blake, and even Cam to come with her. But they didn't expect a horrible storm to ruin their plans...leaving them all shipwrecked. Stranded and separated, can they survive without their powers?  
  
Shipwrecked  
  
Author: Angel Spirit  
  
Chapter II: Storm Front  
  
The past week had been more then fun for the Rangers-and surprisingly, it really did feel like a vacation to them-Cyber Cam hadn't called in with any attacks in Blue Bay Harbor...even though Cam did check on his computerized self from time to time, all was clear...giving the Ranger's a little breathing room and time to relax and enjoy themselves.  
  
However, Hunter was having a hard time getting Cam to do just that. They'd already docked once, and by the time that Hunter had managed to get Cam off the ship to go exploring, half the day had already gone by. He was getting a little aggravated with Cam, who seemed to be the only person he could actually 'hang out' with. Tori and Blake seemed to do everything together. And Hunter knew, that Blake didn't realize he was doing it-besides, Hunter had wanted his little brother and Tori to get together...right?  
  
And then there were Shane and Dustin...who had finally come out of the bag, telling everyone about their relationship-well, actually it had been Shane who had told them all when he had gone to find the ship's doctor, as Dustin still hadn't been feeling well the next night after he had gotten sea sick- and then it turned out that the poor kid had the flu.  
  
So Shane had spent most of the past few days taking care of a sick Dustin, who had forced him to go out and enjoy himself the day that they had docked. Even though Shane hadn't wanted to, he did, at least for a little while-and Hunter was able to enjoy some time with someone else other then Cam for once.  
  
He just...didn't understand Cam as well as he thought that he had. He'd always had his eyes on Cam-the moment he met Cam, something between them just...sparked. Well, he knew that at least for him, something sparked. He wasn't sure about Cameron Wannatabe...but...  
  
He sighed. It was just him at the moment, as they were getting ready to dock again, and Tori and Blake along with Cam, were topside. He had complained about a headache, and wanted to take the day to himself-which, the other's had of course, been fine with.  
  
Hunter wasn't really expecting the knock on the door when it came, but when he opened it, he wasn't too surprised to find Shane looking a bit guilty on the other side of it.  
  
"Dude...I think I really need to get off this boat this time-as much as I love taking care of Dustin, I want-"  
  
"Some peace to yourself?" Shane chuckled lightly as Hunter finished his sentence, nodding.  
  
"And some fresh air...I heard that you were staying..." The dark haired teen trailed off, and Hunter grinned, getting exactly what it was that Shane was trying to ask him.  
  
"You want me to check on Dustin every so often? Yeah, I can do it...how is he feeling today anyway?" Shane grinned back and gave Hunter the thumbs up sign.  
  
"He's so much better today then he was a the other morning...I think tomorrow he'll probably be moving around like the rest of us." Hunter grinned back.  
  
"Sounds awesome...the mix of seasickness and the flu couldn't have been fun!" He exclaimed, and Shane smirked.  
  
"Yeah, just as Dustin...look, I've got my cell phone, so if you two need anything don't be afraid to call me." Shane said as he indicated his phone that was attached to his belt, as Hunter nodded at him briefly wondering for a few seconds what it was that Shane was going to say before he had cut himself off.  
  
"Sounds good man...have fun, okay?" Nodding at the other and giving Hunter a small wave before he disappeared completely, Shane headed out, as Hunter went and knocked on the door next to his, waiting for a few minutes before Dustin's voice came through telling him to enter.  
  
"Hey man...feeling better? You look better." Dustin nodded at Hunter's question, sitting on top of one of the beds wearing a pair of black and yellow checked flannel pants and a black sleep shirt, with the remote in his hand as he flipped through the stations for what looked like to him, had to be the billionth time-Hunter already knew nothing good was on.  
  
"Yeah, I feel better-a lot better then I have...though, I would've felt better if...if..." For a minute, Dustin looked like he was ready to cry, and Hunter raised an eyebrow wondering what was wrong as he went and sat down on the edge of the bed.  
  
"If? Something bothering you Dustin?" All the child of Earth did, was sigh as he paused on a music video channel before tossing the remote aside, and looked at Hunter with sudden pain-filled eyes.  
  
"Shane and I had a fight this morning-our first one since...we...you know, got together...it was pretty bad actually..." Dustin bit his lower lip, and Hunter inwardly cursed. So that was what all the shouting from earlier had been about...he, Tori, Blake, and Cam had thought that it had been from one of the other cabin's, as Cam had come over to their place to 'get away from the lovebirds' as he had said it.  
  
"I'm sorry man...I'm sure he didn't mean whatever he said." Hunter said, trying to soothe his clearly agitated friend, who sighed and looked back down at the sheets as though there was something more amusing on them. Putting a hand on Dustin's shoulder, he squeezed it lightly, and when Dustin finally looked up he saw that Hunter wore a mischievous expression that he couldn't quite define it's meaning.  
  
"Let's say you and I find a movie channel we can order for the day or something...sound good?" Dustin only shrugged, and Hunter sighed. He knew that Dustin probably wasn't going to be the best of company coming into this. Hell, the kid had been sick with the flu for the first part of the trip, and now he had a fight with Shane-his boyfriend...  
  
It felt awkward, in a way, saying that Shane was Dustin's boyfriend. Oh sure, like everyone else he was perfectly fine with it. Hell, he liked Cam the same way that Dustin and Shane liked each other...just...in a few ways he was envious of the two for being able to actually get together and admit their feelings for one another. As though knowing that something was on Hunter's mind, Dustin sent him a sideways glance and cleared his throat.  
  
"So...dude...is something wrong? You've been really quiet the past fifteen minutes...want to talk?" Was it just Hunter's imagination, or did Dustin have a pleading look in his eyes? Hunter only sighed, and reached for the remote control as he switched off the TV, and just looked at Dustin.  
  
"Talk...is that what you want to do?" He wasn't sure why he was so nervous around Dustin suddenly. Maybe it was because he was afraid that if he actually just talked with Dustin, that then he'd let out his secret...and no one, not even Blake, knew his secret. Dustin shrugged.  
  
"I mean, you just look like you want to talk...I can definitely tell something's bothering you now." He murmured, as Hunter sighed and finally decided to give up. He figured that if anyone would understand what he was feeling and going through, that it would be Dustin.  
  
"You know-oh I don't know." He stammered, suddenly unable to find the right words to tell Dustin exactly what was going on. Dustin only smirked.  
  
"Care if I give it a try at what's bothering you?" Hunter nodded, just wondering how close Dustin would get to his secret...if he got close at all.  
  
"Do you remember how I acted after...after the whole Marah ordeal?" The other teen asked, and Hunter nodded again, not quite understanding what it was that Dustin was getting at.  
  
"I wasn't acting the way I was...because...because I still had a thing for Marah. I...I was only using the thing for Marah as a cover-up for who I really liked. And I didn't want to tell any of you who I really liked, because I was...well, I was afraid. I know that not everyone is as nice about understanding-well, I guess I can just call it sexual preferences-as some people, but...I was...afraid to loose the people I cared about if I told them and they didn't-like me for what I was...you know?" Again, Hunter nodded, feeling like he didn't know how to word exactly what he was thinking, and instead, allowed Dustin to continue on as he looked at Hunter shyly.  
  
"You know, the first person who realized that I was using Marah as a cover up, was Shane himself? I'm not sure how, but for awhile I was scared that he had figured it out because he knew how I felt about him, that he'd figured it all out and that our friendship was history. A reason why I never told Shane how I felt about him, was because I valued his friendship too much. I didn't want to tell him and have him not feel the same way about me...it would just be to awkward, you know?" He sighed, and Hunter, going into 'brotherly protective/comfort' mode as Blake put it sometimes, scooted up along the bed until he was right next to Dustin and gave him a sideways hug, allowing Dustin to lay his head on his shoulder.  
  
"I think I know what you're getting at. You're trying to tell me that maybe I've got feelings for someone, and I don't want to admit it because I'm too scared, and that's why I faked my headache today was so that way I could get away from that someone?" Dustin smirked again.  
  
"Well, I didn't really say that..." Hunter smacked him playfully alongside the head as Dustin laughed and sat up.  
  
"You know what Hunter?" Hunter only looked at Dustin to continue what he was saying.  
  
"I can see how Blake idolizes you as a big brother. There are so many times when I've been jealous of the bond that you two have...and you're not even blood related. Yet, you act like he is...you take care of him when he's down or sick and make him feel better, you two both look after each other and can joke about this and that...I wish...makes me kind of wish that I could have that with my siblings." The Crimson Ranger blinked. It was the first time really, since meeting him, that Dustin had ever mentioned any family to him.  
  
"You've got siblings?" Hunter asked, and Dustin grimaced.  
  
"Yeah...I've got sibs alright. Two older sisters, one older brother, and one younger brother...so I'm the second to youngest. And I hate it sometimes, I really do. I'm so...different from them. None of them are interested in what I'm interested in-it's almost as though I live on a completely different planet."  
  
"That sucks." Hunter commented, and Dustin sighed and shook his head.  
  
"You have no idea Hunter, none at all. My family is...well...my family's rich-really rich. We're probably the wealthiest family in Blue Bay Harbor. You know the big mansion-like house that everyone always stops to look at whenever they're driving by, the one with the fancy entrance gates and all that?" Yeah, Hunter knew exactly which house Dustin was talking about, and as he did so, Hunter's eyes opened wide.  
  
"Don't tell me you live there!" Hunter exclaimed, fully understanding what Dustin was trying to tell him...who suddenly looked away, his cheeks flushing red with embarrassment.  
  
"Yeah-I live there. Well, I live there when I'm not on the track, Storm Chargers, Ninja Ops, or being a Power Ranger anyway." He sighed, and leaned his head back onto Hunter's shoulder.  
  
"I really don't want to talk about my family anymore...gives me a headache, and I'm just starting to feel better." Dustin murmured, as Hunter chuckled and rubbed the brunette's back a little bit.  
  
"So why don't we go ahead and see which movie channel is good to order? Remember, this trip is on Tori." Hunter said with a grin as Dustin chuckled.  
  
"Sound good to me...anything with Lord of the Rings on?" With luck, Hunter actually found a station that had Lord of the Rings just starting, so they got comfortable and watched that, as well as the Ghostbusters one that was on afterward...and that, was how Hunter spent the rest of the day with Dustin. Sure, he hadn't quite told Dustin his secret-but, he had the feeling that Dustin had already pretty much figured it out. And a part of him was quite relieved in honest truth. Now he had a confidant...someone to talk to who'd completely understand his position. And who knew...maybe Dustin could help him figure out a way to get Cam.  
  
~***~  
  
When Shane had left with Tori, Blake, and Cam, the trio instantly knew that something was wrong...however, they didn't quite press matters, only because they knew that it would probably annoy Shane. So as much as they didn't ask questions, a part of Shane wanted them to just so he could get off his chest what was really bothering him. Although, all the fun activities that they had done that day, did help keep his mind off of the still getting well Dustin he had left back on the ship.  
  
He'd never been snorkeling before...the only one out of the four of them who had ever been was Tori, but even she had admitted that it had been a long time-so after a half a day's worth of a beginner's class, they were able to go out and explore on their own.  
  
"I wish Dustin were here...he'd have loved this." Tori commented quietly as she and him were putting away their snorkeling gear. Shane only sighed and ran a hand through his damp hair. It was obvious now that Tori wanted to talk to him before Blake and Cam decided to come in from the water.  
  
"I wish...that he was too. If he hadn't been such an arrogant brat this morning." He hadn't meant to say it the way he had...and a part of him knew that it was his fault who had started the fight. Dustin had wanted him to have a good time, and not take care of him, as after all this was a vacation. But Shane had wanted to stay with Dustin and take care of him- but Dustin had told him that he didn't need to be babied, and besides...he was feeling better-and not throwing up anymore. But still...Shane had liked taking care of Dustin.  
  
So before he knew it, he was telling Tori all of this as they walked a little ways on the beach while they waited for their other friends. Tori only grinned.  
  
"It was a fight that was bound to happen sooner or later Shane-Dustin's probably just feeling smothered at the moment...do you remember why he got the job at Storm Chargers?" Shane smiled, remembering the day that Kelly had offered Dustin a job-one of the reasons being was because he had hung out there so much when it had first opened.  
  
"Yeah...it was because he said he wanted his own cash to spend and not his families." Tori nodded.  
  
"Yes...Dustin hates being babied or being pressured-Shane, you know that as much as I do. And while I'm sure he knows that you want to take care of him, I think you...might just need to give him some space...or something, I don't know." Shane shook his head.  
  
"How can I give him space when I want to spend every waking moment with him Tori? I love him! It's just so hard because there are times when I think that he doesn't like me back." He murmured softly and Tori put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, giving it a tight squeeze.  
  
"You know as well as I do that Dustin loves you back the same way-it's probably just harder for him to do it. I know I've known Dustin and his family longer then you have Shane, and trust me when I say that it's probably just hard for him to open up. His family was never really big on emotions. You're going to have to teach him how." Shane nodded and smiled at Tori.  
  
"Thanks Tori-I needed this." She grinned at him and gave him a wink as they turned back to head back to where they had agreed to meet, should they get separated.  
  
"I know you did. I knew something was really bothering you for most of the day-so that was you and Dustin who were arguing so loudly this morning, eh?" She giggled as Shane lowered his head in embarrassment.  
  
"You guys heard us? How loud were we?" Again Tori giggled, her smile lighting up her eyes.  
  
"Let's just say, that I think you two might have to apologize to the other few people who are also in our hall." He groaned.  
  
"That loud, huh?" Tori shrugged as Shane grimaced.  
  
"Well, I know we heard it pretty good-though we pretended not too, if that makes a difference...so, Dustin's alone today then?" Shane shook his head.  
  
"Nah, I asked Hunter to look in on him from time to time...but...I kind of want to go back to the ship now and talk to Dustin-maybe see if he wants to get up and walk around for a bit." Tori nodded and pushed him toward the direction of the docks where their cruise ship had docked for the day.  
  
"Go on...I'm sure he's probably talked with Hunter and is ready to make up." She gave him a sly wink as Shane laughed.  
  
"Tori, you're bad." All she did was wave at him as she continued on down the beach where Blake and Cam were just getting out of the water. Shane watched her leave for a few minutes, before sighing and continued on his way back to the ship. Tori was right, he knew she was. And tonight, if Dustin wanted too, he'd show him the time of his life.  
  
~***~  
  
Hunter had woken up from falling asleep next to Dustin when he heard footsteps approaching from outside the door. Deciding that it probably wouldn't be the best idea for him to be caught sleeping so close to Dustin- who had fallen asleep as well-in case if it were Shane coming back early, he quickly rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and stretched as he stood up, glad that they'd left the TV on a decent sound so that it wouldn't seem as though they had both fallen asleep-which, they had...  
  
Sure enough, as Hunter sat on the edge of the other bed in the room in Indian Style position, Shane entered the room, smiling a little as he noticed that Dustin was asleep.  
  
"How is he?" Hunter grinned and gave Shane the thumbs up sign as Shane had given him earlier when he had asked he same question.  
  
"He's good...he was able to keep down all his lunch by the way, so I'm thinking he's probably quite close to being back to normal as normal can get." Shane nodded and grinned back at Hunter.  
  
"Thanks for looking after him Hunter, I appreciate it." Hunter only shrugged as he stood and bumped fists with Shane as he headed for the door.  
  
"No problem. Are the other's back yet?" He asked, and Shane shook his head.  
  
"Nah, they're not-I decided to come back because I think Dustin and I need to-well...talk." A low groan was heard as the two teens looked over to see Dustin waking up, looking in Shane's direction as he brought a hand up to rub his temples.  
  
"Don't say that we have to talk...I hate that..." He moaned, as Shane smirked and Hunter showed himself out of the room as Shane came and sat right next to Dustin on the bed.  
  
"Yes, we do have to talk...seriously now. NO arguing, okay?" He asked, emphasizing the no arguing part as Dustin sighed and nodded, turning off the TV. He didn't even remember what he was watching anyway.  
  
"Good. Now come here." As Dustin leaned forward, Shane kissed him lightly on the lips, and Dustin managed a small grin before he returned the kiss.  
  
"I think I'm going to like this talk." Shane chuckled as he continued the kiss a little more, and Dustin moaned.  
  
"This is just the first part of the talk." The Red Ranger declared softly, as he continued to kiss Dustin, who gladly kissed him back, thinking that maybe all arguments couldn't be that bad-especially if they ended up like this!  
  
~***~  
  
Tori, Cam, and Blake met up with Hunter, Shane, and surprisingly Dustin later on that evening for dinner.  
  
"Hey dude, all better?" Blake asked as he put a hand on Dustin's shoulder, who nodded, wearing a small smile as he did so and reached out to grab Shane's hand, who eagerly took it-but not before giving Tori a quick wink. Tori grinned back at him.  
  
"Yeah, so much...I'm starving...so how's the food on this ship anyway?" The other's laughed as they managed to find a table for all of them to fit, and then went to get some food. Though, as they were in the line for the buffet table that ways offered that night, Hunter could've sworn that he saw someone who looked exactly like Kapri. So he nudged Cam who was standing next to him and pointed out the girl with long blond hair who was a little ways before them.  
  
"Dude...is it just my own eyes playing tricks on me, or does that actually look like Kapri?" Cam squinted, and bit his lower lip as though he wasn't sure how to answer, before sighing.  
  
"You know, I thought I saw her and Marah earlier this week? But I wasn't sure...I mean, they're my cousins-I should be able to know if I'm actually seeing them or not." He murmured in exasperation, and joined Hunter on their way back to the table, plates full.  
  
"Okay...time for a 'meeting'." Cam claimed softly as he emphasized the meeting part, and the other's groaned.  
  
"What's wrong Cam?" Tori asked, lowering her voice and glad that the music had suddenly turned on-that way, no one would be able to hear their conversation or eavesdrop either.  
  
"Hunter and I think that we just saw Marah and Kapri on this ship." Tori's eyes widened as she allowed them to take a quick scan of the room, before taking a quick swallow of her Iced Tea so that she wouldn't choke on her bread as Cam told her this.  
  
"You know what...I...I think I saw them earlier this week too! I just wasn't sure-I mean, I thought it was my eyes playing tricks on me!" She whispered frantically as Blake looked at her and then at Cam, and sighed.  
  
"I guess this would be the time to say that I also think I saw them but wasn't sure? It's so much harder to tell them apart from regular civilians when they aren't alienized...know what I mean?" The other's nodded.  
  
"So the only one's who haven't seen them, are Dustin and Shane then?" Cam asked, just to make sure and he was positive that they'd both agree, but only Shane nodded his head to tell Cam that he was right-for his part anyway. Dustin however, was shaking his.  
  
"No dude, you're wrong. I think I was the first one to think that I saw them." Hunter nodded again then, remembering that Dustin had said something on the plane last weekend about seeing Marah.  
  
"You said you thought you saw Marah getting up on the plane...it could've very well been her." Hunter mused aloud, as he took a bit of the sandwich he had, as Cam sighed and took off his glasses, rubbing his eyes.  
  
"I knew this vacation was going too quiet and peaceful for us. Let's just continue to keep an eye out-I'll go and inform Cyber Cam after dinner back at Ops, and see if he can manage to trace down Marah and Kapri-just to confirm our suspicions. If the two are on this boat, we're in trouble...we don't have any idea what they have planned." Everyone else agreed, and went back to eating-though, their table was probably one of the quieter ones there that night...and, they were the first to leave as well.  
  
~***~  
  
While Cam was contacting Cyber Cam, the other's were waiting to hear the news as they just lounged around Blake's, Hunter's, and Tori's room. Blake and Tori were on one bed, as Hunter and Cam were on the other, Dustin and Shane were sitting against the wall.  
  
"Well, it's official. It has been Marah and Kapri on this ship who we've been seeing...though why my cousins would be on a cruise line, is beyond me." Cam murmured as he closed off the lap top he had been working on and sat back, musing a bit.  
  
"So what do we do now?" Tori asked softly, as Cam shook his head.  
  
"We're going to have to scout them out. I know it's harder finding them when they're civilianized, but...it's better then the alternative, which is having them attack us first. We don't need the rest of the people on this cruise with us to find out that we're Power Rangers." The others agreed with him as Hunter stretched and yawned.  
  
"I'm ready for bed-what about the rest of you?" He murmured, as Cam only shook his head.  
  
"We've got to be careful. I don't think we should all be sleeping at the same time, now that we know that our enemies are onboard this ship. I think two of us should stay up and then we'll rotate watch every few hours." Everyone groaned...and Cam knew that while he also wasn't eager to do night watches, he also knew that if they didn't watch their backs, the chances of his cousins sneaking up on them and doing something would probably happen. Sure, Marah and Kapri acted like complete idiots sometimes...but that didn't mean that it was their true nature. Cam was sure that Blake and Hunter had also seen the two sisters at their worst as well.  
  
"So who's taking first watch tonight?" He asked, and another chorus of groans rang out, before everyone shouted out "not me!"  
  
~***~  
  
As it were, Shane and Dustin got the first watch. Much to Shane's horror and Dustin's amusement as he hadn't quite felt like going to bed because he'd spent most of his afternoon sleeping and then later lounging around with Shane.  
  
"Tonight was so how I didn't want it to go." Shane murmured as he yawned, finding it difficult to stay awake. Cam had suggested that they take a 'tour' of the ship, as they were first watch and would probably not look conspicuous as to why they'd be up and moving at that time of night. So they were basically moving through the different levels of the ship, until they got to the top...and when they got to the top deck, they decided to stay there.  
  
Until Shane noticed a storm moving in, and he pointed out the dark clouds to Dustin.  
  
"Man oh man...those things look ugly." Dustin commented as a strong wind picked up and they decided to go back in. However, just as they were going to go back in, the door leading into the stairwell opened to reveal no other then Marah and Kapri themselves. All four teens looked at each other in shock for a moment, but Dustin and Shane were the first ones to recover.  
  
"What in the hell are you doing on this ship? Do you realize you've just ruined our vacation?" Shane snarled, maneuvering into a defensive position as Dustin did the same.  
  
"What are you talking about? You've just ruined our vacation!" Marah snapped back, as Kapri nodded and the two stood on defense as well. Dustin snorted.  
  
"Yeah, right-so you two are on vacation? Since when did Lothor decide that?" Kapri smirked.  
  
"Since he decided that we deserved a holiday." But her smirk faltered when lightning flashed from above. Dustin and Shane looked at each other, wondering just how sincere the two girls in front of them were being. They still stood there, glaring at one another, neither one making the first move.  
  
"So what are you two doing up here at this time of night anyway?" Shane asked, trying to figure out if they really were telling the truth. Marah sighed.  
  
"Kapri was feeling a little seasick, so I thought some fresh air would help her." Kapri nodded, and the two boys only rolled their eyes.  
  
"You really think you can fool us that easily Marah? Give me a break." Dustin snapped, and Marah actually looked hurt.  
  
"Well, I fooled you once-didn't I?" She snapped back, thinking that Dustin would act as he always did when their incredibly short relationship was brought up-she was surprised when all he did was step back so he was stepping backward into Shane, and Shane put an arm around his waist as Dustin shook his head.  
  
"Yeah...once Marah. But you know, you actually helped me?" Marah stared at him as she and Kapri noticed exactly what was going on between the two Rangers in front of them-and Marah felt anger growing inside her. A part of her still really liked Dustin. She'd always liked him, liked him when she first met him-out of all the male Rangers, she thought that Dustin was the cutest. But now it looked like Dustin was with-Shane? Of all people, why Shane? Why the Red Ranger?  
  
"Don't tell me you two are actually together?" Kapri gasped, looking like she was ready to be sick-be it from seasickness or just the fact that she thought that two males being together was disgusting. She now felt for her sister-she knew how hard Marah had fallen for Dustin...and that Marah was still in love with Dustin.  
  
"Got a problem with that?" Shane asked coldly, protectively moving Dustin so that he was now behind him. Marah felt her rage continue to grow as she watched the two Rangers in front of her interact with each other. It was obvious now to her, that she had lost the one thing that she had hoped to one day get back-she knew that the day her father would be defeated, that she and her sister wouldn't be taken down with him. At least, she wasn't planning on it. But now, the one thing that Marah had focused on getting through her father's whole 'we're evil so let's destroy the world' bit, was suddenly gone.  
  
"You...little...brat." She hissed at the Red Ranger, pointing her finger at him as they circled one another, Shane still standing protectively in front of Dustin, now in fighting stance.  
  
While this was going on, Dustin decided to raise the alarm. He hadn't known that Marah would react this way-but then again, he should've. He signaled for Tori, as it took her a couple of seconds, and Dustin knew that she, like Hunter, Blake, and Cam, were probably asleep.  
  
"Go for Tori." Her sleepy voice murmured, as Dustin quickly and quietly explained what was going on up above deck. When Tori spoke next, her voice sounded more awake and alert then it had at first.  
  
"I'll wake up the others, we'll come and meet you." Dustin nodded, telling her to hurry as he finished his communication in time to see Marah blast Shane with an energy blast-sending him into the pool that had started to slosh around as Dustin realized that the storm around the ship was getting worse. Lightning streaked the sky more often, and the clouds grew darker and angrier. "Called your little friends?" Kapri asked with a smirk as she sent an electric streak toward Dustin, who managed to dodge it last second and went flying into a railway in the process, groaning as he did so. The ship was rocking fiercely with the winds that had suddenly turned fierce and raging- and he found that he was liking this trip less and less. Why he had ever agreed to go on such a trip, was beyond him.  
  
Note to self-next time Tori begs you to go on a vacation with her-say no! He thought, as he dodged another one of Kapri's attacks. He looked over his shoulder to see Shane getting himself out of the water from the pool, but he fell back in again as the boat swayed once more.  
  
"Shane!" Dustin hollered, going over to help him, and was almost at the pools edge when suddenly the rain decided to rear it's ugly head and a torrent of water fell from the sky like a gigantic waterfall. Dustin could hardly see his hands in front of his face. The ships alarm sounded suddenly, and around them people began to panic.  
  
"We'll finish this later Yellow Ranger!" Marah shouted as she grabbed her sister and they suddenly disappeared. Dustin cursed inwardly at the fact that they were able to do that so quickly-and that they weren't going to be in the trouble that Dustin knew he and his friends probably were in now. Speaking of friends...  
  
"Shane!" This time since he didn't have Marah and Kapri to distract him, he saw Shane climbing back out of the pool, looking wet and miserable as he almost lost his grip again, but Dustin managed to make it over to him in enough time to help him back up.  
  
By the time that he had gotten his boyfriend out of the sloshing pool, which now probably had half the water contents as the ship rocked dangerously side to side, the two boys had a difficult time making their way across the top deck. The wind was so bad that they couldn't hear the announcement that was being said over the intercom, and they didn't know what was going on until they bumped into Hunter and Cam who had gone looking for them.  
  
"Dude, what's going on?!?" Shane asked, realizing just how wet he really was-but when he looked over at Dustin, he realized that his boyfriend wasn't that much drier then he was...so he wouldn't have to explain why he was soaked to the bone.  
  
"The ship's taking in water! The captain's making everyone evacuate, the storm's gotten so bad though, that they're making everyone go to the dining hall and from there they're going to escort people out to the life boats!" Hunter shouted, as he grabbed a hold of Dustin's shoulder and gently steered the brunette in the right direction. Dustin had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach as he was wishing more and more that he was anywhere but on this ship at the moment.  
  
"Where's Tori and Blake?" He asked, as Cam nodded his head in the direction of an overhang where the two were waiting for their friends.  
  
"Are you two okay?" Tori asked immediately as soon as the four arrived, and Dustin nodded.  
  
"Yeah, we're just a little wet, that's all!" He joked, as Tori grinned a little in relief as Hunter and Cam herded them all into the dining hall. Before they got there though, a huge wave managed to come over the side- knocking Dustin and Blake down, and the ship tipped backward enough so that the two went barreling down the ship's deck, much to Shane's, Tori's, and Hunter's horror.  
  
"We've got to help them!" Tori cried out, as Hunter nodded. The situation with the ship wasn't looking so good-he wondered if they'd be able to evacuate everyone in time before it went down, and looked over his shoulder to see that the process had already been started.  
  
"You and Cam go to be evacuated Tori! Shane and I will get Dustin and Blake!" Though Tori wanted to help, she realized that Hunter meant business, and Cam took her by the arm and started to guide her toward where he knew they could get life vests.  
  
By the time Hunter and Shane had managed to find the two, they only saw Blake at first, hanging onto the rail and looking absolutely terrified. When he saw Hunter, he cried out in relief.  
  
"HUNTER! HELP!" The two Rangers dashed to his side to see that he was only hanging onto the railing with one hand, and just barely, his grip was starting to slip. Shane looked over and cursed, feeling a bit panicked as he saw that it was an unconscious Dustin that Blake was holding tightly onto.  
  
"He hit his head against the railing before he and I started to go over!" Blake explained as the ship pitched again, and as Blake lost his grip, Hunter grabbed a hold of him, determined not to let his brother go. Shane sighed with relief as he saw that Blake didn't let go of Dustin in the process of this, and saw that the Navy Thunder Ranger had an immensely strong grip on the brunette...it didn't look like he was going to be letting go of Dustin anytime soon.  
  
"HELP ME PULL HIM UP!" Hunter hollered, his voice being carried over by the wind as Shane nodded and grabbed a hold of Hunter to make sure that he was balanced and wouldn't fall over.  
  
"Is it just me, or does this remind you too much of Titanic?" Blake sputtered as they managed to pull him back up, and Hunter hugged his brother in relief, as Shane brought up his unconscious boyfriend the rest of the way on his own.  
  
"Dustin? Dustin, come on dude..." He murmured, lightly fingering the bump that had started to form on his boyfriend's forehead along with a deep cut right above his left eyebrow. He kept on trying to wake him, but Dustin only groaned. The four teenagers were making their way back up toward where the dining hall was, when a brilliant streak of lightning-too bright to be just one flash alone, hit the deck. As Hunter knocked Blake out of the way and rolled with him so they weren't hit, they felt a searing heat the next minute they stood, and knew that they were in more trouble then what they bargained for.  
  
"Shit." Hunter muttered, as Shane suddenly looked pale as a ghost, still holding onto Dustin as he looked at the flames that the lightning had created. They were blocking their path-they were stuck.  
  
"Tori and Cam are on the other side with the other passengers...at least they'll be okay!" Blake shouted, and Shane only nodded his head, wishing that his younger sister hadn't dragged him off to see Titanic as many times as she had when she had fallen in love with the movie when it had come out into the theatre's...and Shane had been the one most available to go with her most of the time, as she hated to go to the movie's by herself.  
  
"So what are we going to do now?" He hollered, and the two Thunder brother's only shrugged.  
  
"There's not much we can do." Hunter replied quietly, but the wind carried his words, so Shane heard him anyway and made a tighter hold on Dustin, who groaned softly again.  
  
"Maybe we can get Cyber Cam to teleport us outta here?" Blake suggested, and his older brother's eyes suddenly lit up.  
  
"Awesome thinking bro!" However, when Hunter tried to reach Cyber Cam, all he got was static, and he frowned as he looked at it with a puzzled expression.  
  
"I don't remember breaking mine at all during this trip...Blake, Shane, what about you guys?" He asked, realizing that the flames were growing and so the three of them had been moving away from the flames...but they were starting to run out of room.  
  
"No go bro...we're toast. Literally." Blake moaned quietly as he just stared at the flames with widened eyes. Another flash of lightning distracted the boys, long enough for another enormous wave to wash over them. Hunter and Blake thought they heard Shane scream something out to them, as they were knocked off their feet by the pounding water. Again Blake managed to grab a hold of the railing, and again he managed to catch someone, but this time it wasn't Dustin, this time it was Hunter. Hunter gripped his arm painfully tight, and was looking down at the water fearfully. If the situation wasn't so serious, Blake would've laughed in amusement...rarely did he get a chance to see Hunter look as petrified as he did now.  
  
"Blake, bro, whatever you do, don't let go!" He hollered up, and Blake nodded as he continued to grip the railing he had managed to grab as tightly as he could. He looked around the top deck for his friends, but he could no longer see Dustin or Shane...and the sinking pit of his stomach that he had felt earlier continued to grow.  
  
"Dude...Hunter, I think that Shane and Dustin have gone overboard, I'm not seeing them!" Blake called down to him, as Hunter only cursed. Blake tried to pull them up, but found that he didn't have the energy-and he was starting to loose his grip-again.  
  
"Bro...I'm sorry...I can't hang on that much longer!" He shouted, feeling panicked as he lost his grip even more.  
  
"Blake! Don't let go!" Hunter yelled back, and though Blake was determined, his fingers were slipping even more. It seemed as though the more he upped his determination to stay in contact with the rail that was keeping them on board the ship and away from the pounding waves below them, the more his fingers were willing to stay curled around the bar. He finally shot one last fearful look down at Hunter.  
  
"Hunter...Hunter, I'm slipping to much...Hunter, whatever happens, I love you!" Looking back up at Blake, Hunter nodded fearfully.  
  
"I love you too bro, and I'm not going to let go of you!" He managed to get this out as Blake finally had to let go of the railing-too tired to hold onto it anymore. He had been keeping both himself and the weight of another person up from the water, but now it looked as though his efforts hadn't been enough, as he and Hunter went plunging down into the water. He briefly thought that he heard someone frantically scream out his name, but then didn't have time to think about it as Hunter still clung fiercely to his arm. Blake realized with horror that this was really happening to them.  
  
'I love you Tori-and I'm sorry I never got a chance to say that to you. And Hunter, I'm so sorry...if I had only managed to hang on...' He thought, and that was the last thing he remembered thinking as his body hit the water shortly after Hunter's did.  
  
TBC  
  
AN2- Ah...brotherly love...gotta love it...I know I do! (ESP with them playing the Thunder Strangers eps, and focusing a lot on Hunter and Blake...*drools*...oh yes, I'm in heaven...I just think it's neat that they've got brothers on the same PR team...I don't think they've ever done that before from what I can remember...) Anyway, Some cornyness in this chapter? Yes. Fun to write? Definitely! ^-~ Add a bit of Dustin angst and romance with everyone else, along with Marah and Kapri causing problems, and...well, you get what I just wrote I suppose! ;P And let me tell you, if you guys really liked this chapter, you'll like the next chapter even more...esp all you Shane/Dustin fans out there...and...oops-I think I've said too much already! So lemme know what you guys think...and review! Please? (Gives audience of readers puppy dog eyes) 


	3. Stranded I: Shane and Dustin

Disclaimer: Sadly I don't own Power Rangers Ninja Storm-because if I did, we'd all get what we want…and as we all know that Disney would probably never even _think_ of pairing our favorite characters the way we do…well…then that makes writing fanfiction in this section even more sweeter…!  

Author's Notes:  

****Grins sheepishly****   I couldn't help myself…I had to do this chapter first, I _had_ to-it was begging to be written first…so for all you Shane/Dustin fans out there, I'm almost positive you'll enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!  (Major angst and drama ahead for those two…I'm not saying anything more here!)  I actually ended up having to _rewrite_ this chapter because I ended up having to switch over to a new computer module because my old one was _to_ old, and the disk that I had saved the original chapter wouldn't work-it decided to be really picky and not even my dad (who works with computers all the time) couldn't figure out what was wrong with it-so I'm assuming it was probably a bad disk or something…so anyway, this is the other version, and personally…I like this one _tons_ better then I liked my previous chapter III-so I suppose I'm glad that the computer disk didn't work out, because if it had, I wouldn't have come up with _this_…and I'm so excited that I'm updating this chapter, and I want to know what all you Dustin and Shane fans think of it…so…I think I'll let you guys go and read it.  

Oh, and one more quick thing-I am _so_ hoping that I didn't make either of them OOC at all…that's something I'm working really hard on _not_ doing.  But you've also got to think that I've thrown them in a completely different situation.  

And for all you Tori and Blake fans, be patient…because trust me when I say they'll get their moments in the spotlight as well…I've got plenty of plans for those two.  ^-~   

Rating: PG13

Warning:  This fic contains slash/yaoi…if you don't like the thought of two males being in love, then I suggest that you turn around now or forever hold your peace-you've been for warned as of now.

Pairings:  Tori/Blake, Hunter/Cam, Dustin/Shane 

Responses to reviewers:  

*Angelic Agony*-

DOWN REVIEWER, DOWN!  *hides behind Blake's Thunder shield*  -_-;;  I updated!  But man oh man…if you hated me for leaving it off in the last chapter…*gulps*…please keep me living?!?  (and I wanna keep my arm…if I loose an arm then I can't type out the next chapter, *can* I?  **gulps again and decides to hide behind Hunter, Blake, and Dustin**)

*Blake-Tori88*=

This chapter explains a little bit of what happened.  And as the story continues, more and more will unfold so not _everything_ will come out into the open.  (that's what makes writing fics so much fun sometimes-the suspense!  ^-~)  

*Weesta*=

**'Don't know why I just love seeing that boy tortured!'**  (chuckles at this)…well put!!!  I'm in the same boat as you are there!  (NO pun intended, heh…sorry! -_-;;)  As much as I *love* Blake and Hunter (which, seriously I'm *incredibly* excited because they're going to play Thunders Return later on this week…*squeals happily*)…I've also got a thing for Dustin (he's too cute!).  And if you *liked* that…then I have the feeling you'll enjoy *this* chapter…I still can't believe I wrote this…-_-;;  I know you probably won't kill me for it, but other's *glances nervously over at Angelic Agony* might...-_-;;  I *know* that part did seem really rushed-I was wondering if anyone else would catch that.  I had parts of the chapter written out already, and I was having problems connecting them together to make it an actual chapter.  I'm eventually planning on maybe reworking that and see if I can't come up with anything else to make it sound more fitting-but for now, I'll leave it…if you've got any suggestions though, I'm always open for them!  My email is on my author's bio…^-^

*CamFan4Ever*=

Ah, but no worries-everyone will get their chance in the spotlight…and as I told all the Tori and Blake fans earlier…patience is a virtue!  I'm working my way toward having some fun with those two…  As I've got plans for Tori and Blake, I've *also* got plans for Hunter and Cam…but I can't really tell all, for I'd give away the plot.  (And you want to be left in suspense, right?  ^-~) Let's just say when that chapter comes up, you'll know it!

*BJvision*- 

**'The whole Marah, Dustin & Shane encounter priceless.'**  Oh yes (and there *might* be some more of those along the way!-who knows what this authoress had up her sleeve…), but it so was (rubs hands with wicked smile on face).  As I told CamFan…you'll all have to wait what's in store for Hunter and Cam…and Tori and Blake.  I know, I know, I'm an evil author for making you guys wait…you won't have long though!  And who knows, Hunter just *might* get what he wants…but I'm not saying one word.  I'll leave it up to yours and CamFan's imaginations until I get that far…^-~  I don't know why I decided to choose Hunter to be the one to talk with Dustin-I think it's because Hunter's got that whole big brother persona going on because he _is_ a big brother.  And I agree with quite a few other people that Dustin just might be a little rich boy-I don't know, I liked how others were playing around with that idea, so I decided to grab it and go.  And I've kind of been in that position myself sometimes (well, not the rich part anyway…wish I was!  Then again, I'm sure we _all_ do!)-it's always nice to have someone understanding like that to talk too.  

*Tsukino Akume*

Takes key to the Dustin/Shane gate, unlocks it, and walks right on in…dunno why, I like this territory…I think I'll hang out around here for awhile!  ^-~  It's so much fun with those too-angsty I think sometimes as well, that's why I like those two together so much.  Yes, it *does* seem turned around with Tori having stayed with Blake and Hunter…I was wondering if anyone would catch that one!  Good eyes…(of course, we both know that Blake wouldn't have it any other way!!!  Hehe…)  I *really* liked your review…you brought up some *awesome* points!  I can't give you *all* the questions to your answers…but……………………………………………….let's just say you *might* be stepping in the right direction on *some* of them.  And as to who screamed out Blake's name…_maybe_ it was Tori-but I'm not telling!  :P  And someone's going to be dreaming away of someone else _real_soon. But as I told BJvision…I'm not done with Marah or Dustin quite yet…

I like the way you're thinking on this!  This chapter is all for you!  Enjoy!!  (And I'm sure you will, cause I had you in mind while I was writing it up! ^-~)

*Prinzessin*-

*Squeals happily and hugs author*  YOU UPDATED YOUR FICS!  As soon as I update this chapter I'm so going and doing some major catching up, so be expecting reviews from me!  ^-~  *Hugs author again*.  I've got lots of fics to keep me company tonight…I'm so excited!!!!!!!!!!!!  And I know how it goes with the whole computer not cooperating deal-that's why I had to get a new module for upstairs in my room because mine was acting like a pain in the rear (it was also an ancient model too…:P)  but I have my new one now and I'm so loving it!  I've got more space (for more fics…^-^)  and it runs like, ten times faster then my old one did!  Not so much Blake and Hunter brotherly stuff in this chapter, as it's focused on Shane and Dustin…but I think it'll be right up your alley none the less…just don't want to shoot me for the ending, okay?  I'm *so* off to read all your updates…*clicks away happily at the mouse until she finds Just A Day, and Searching and Finding…*

*HyDrOmAtIc*=

You know, you REALLY make people think while they're typing out your penname?  :P  Hehe, I like it though! 

 Gives off a little bow…thank you, thank you very much-I'm so glad you liked it!  Dustin and Shane are just so cute together, it's hard *NOT* to have fun with their characters!  If you like *this*, then you've *got* to go and check out Prinzessin's stuff as well…seriously, she's got some really awesome fics, and Tsukino Akume as well!  Dustin/Shane, Cam/Hunter fest here I come!  ^-~  I'll have you smiling soon with Tori and Blake-no worries there, I can't leave those two out, can I???  But as I've been saying, making people wait is half the fun!  (Besides, then you'll get al excited when I finally get some Blake and Tori stuff up-I've been in your position before, waiting for things…and trust me it's always sweet whenever they finally *do* come!)  

So that's it for the responses…I'm really off to go and read Prinzessin's updates now, and any other updates I'll find tonight…enjoy the read you guys!  

^-~V  

Shipwrecked 

Chapter III: Stranded I: Dustin and Shane 

Shane groaned as he slowly opened his eyes, bringing a hand up to shield them from the onslaught of rain.  He couldn't believe that it was _still_ raining. 

It was all a nightmare…I'm lying on the ship's deck and Tori and Dustin are going to be bending over me laughing their heads off cause' I slipped and banged my head and fell unconscious and dreamed the whole going overboard thing.  

But as Shane slowly managed to sit up so that his elbows were supporting him and he managed to look around, he realized real quick, that what had happened, was really real-and Dustin and Tori weren't there laughing at him for his clumsiness, as he had hoped that they would be.  

Dustin… 

Again Shane closed his eyes as he felt a wave of sorrow and pain lace through his body as he remembered what he could of what happened…

The wave had come over, and Shane had known that it would overpower his ability to stay on the ship…he didn't see the Thunder brother's at all as the wave came over, thrashing down upon him and the still unconscious Dustin…who he had had a death grip on at the time, determined _not_ to let go.  If he let go of Dustin, he _knew_ he'd never see the brunette again-Dustin was unconscious…there was no way that he'd know of what was happening and be able to save himself.  

But as he was pulled overboard, and into the treacherous waters below, he found it hard to keep his grip on Dustin as he struggled to make it to the surface.  He had actually _prayed_ to the spirits to help them…and if he got separated from Dustin, to watch over him-to make sure that he made it…that maybe he'd surface and one of the people in the lifeboats would see him and rescue him and he'd be okay.  

The water had been too powerful.  Shane had known that if Tori had been in his position, she probably wouldn't have been so weak. She would've been able to make it to the surface, to hang onto Dustin for dear life instead of just _trying_, as Shane had been.  But eventually Shane's lungs started to burn and a strong current was bringing him _and_ Dustin down deeper into the water…

And Shane couldn't remember what happened after that.  From there on, his mind was a blur…and he realized then that he didn't _want_ to know what happened after that last memory.  

He let out a choked sob as he ran a hand through his soaking wet hair and gave a wild glance around him-seeing no one.  

"Dustin…"  Shane murmured aloud, feeling quite miserable as he managed to stand and drag himself away from the shore.  It wouldn't do him any good to stay in this weather much longer-he was already wet, and the rain wasn't helping him dry off much either…if he stayed out here, he'd get the pneumonia for sure.  But then again, that might not be a bad idea-if he got the pneumonia, then he'd probably die from it as there wouldn't be a cure where he was now-and then he could join Dustin on the 'other side'.  

But he shook his head.

"No…I can't do that.  As much as I want to give up, I know I _can't_."  He whispered, knowing deep inside he couldn't.  Dustin would want him to keep on going-to survive.  Tears welled up in his eyes at the thought of the dark haired brunette, who he'd never get to see again-who's smile he'd never get to smile back at, who's dark brown eyes he'd never get to look lovingly into again.  

He held back another sob that threatened to escape as he started to walk to where the jungle-like area was behind him.  

But before he could put a foot into the new terrain which looked very different from the beach he was leaving behind, the soft whisper of voices seemed to call to him through the wind.

_'Go back_.'  They said, and he immediately stopped and turned around, looking confused-there was no one else on this…this island but him, right?

'Go back…you **have** to go back…'  

The voices called out to him, and for a few minutes, Shane just stood there, listening the soft spoken voices in the wind tell him to go back.  He thought it was all his imagination…until…

'You're missing something…someone…go back…go back…child of earth…go back…'  

The voices were getting fainter as Shane finally decided to turn around and go back, his mind feeling numb-as though he were in a state of just on the verge of falling asleep.  

That, and the fact that the voices in the wind had mentioned the child of earth…_Dustin_.  The wind blew fierce around him…but he was following a different wind-a gentler wind that seemed to want him to follow it-that was leading him somewhere.  He felt like he was in some kind of trance as he stumbled across the sandy beach.  

When he got to what he felt like he was supposed to be looking for, the gentle wind that he had been following, stopped-and instantly he felt the snapping cold wind that was a part of the storm that he had been in all along.  No longer protected by the soft wind, he immediately snapped out of the trance-like state he had been in to look down away…and saw a figure lying still in the sand…a very _familiar_ looking figure.  

His heart speeding up ten times faster then what it already was beating, Shane dashed down the short distance where the other wind had left him, as he fell to his knees next to the still figure.  Light brownish blond hair-normally curly and in a awry state, now plastered down from the sea and the rain…eyes closed hiding the warm, gentle orbs behind them…

_"DUSTIN!_"  He was sure his voice probably howled with the wind as he panicked at seeing just _how still_ Dustin was…and pale.  Incredibly pale-white as a ghost-whiter then he had been when he had gotten both seasick and a touch of the flu when this whole cruise had started…but at least then Shane had known that his boyfriend was _alive_.  Now though…now the panic he started to feel heightened and he was breathing hard and shallow as he placed two fingers against the cold skin of Dustin's neck, feeling for a pulse.  When he didn't find one, he tried again on Dustin's wrist-and again got no pulse, only the feeling of icy cold skin once more.  

His body shaking, Shane let out a strangled cry as he gently rolled Dustin over so that he was on his back now…earlier he had been lying on his right side, facing away from him.  And as Shane got a really good look at Dustin, he realized just then how _dead_ Dustin looked. 

God no…_please NO_!  He thought, panicking even more, wondering just how long Dustin had been lying here…and what would've happened if the wind hadn't called out to him, telling him to go back.  

_Wind Rangers_…

The thought occurred from him from out of nowhere, as he realized that the voices in the wind that he had heard from before, the voices that had led him to Dustin, had to be the Wind Spirits.  They had _wanted_ him to find Dustin…they had _led_ him to Dustin, which meant that he still had to have a chance!  

Remembering all he had learned from his CPR and first aid courses that Kelly had required of him and Dustin to take when they had first started working at Storm Chargers for her, Shane only prayed as he leaned over and pinched Dustin's nose, placing his mouth over Dustin's cold and unresponsive one…he wanted to cry as he thought of all the previous times when he'd took all of Dustin's kisses for granted…

Come on Dustin…I can't loose you!  _PLEASE_!  He thought, as he frantically began to perform CPR on his boyfriend, praying and hoping as the rain continued to pour down on the both of them.

~***~

He was cold…so cold…he didn't think it was possible to breathe…was he _dead_?  He didn't _feel _dead.  Not yet anyway…he kind of felt…buoyed-just…floating really.  

Surrounded by a warm, comfortable darkness that he really didn't want to leave.  Warm as dirt and soil would be on a hot day when the sun would be beating down upon it…the warmth was wrapping it around him like a cocoon of sorts, and he felt safe-like nothing and no one could hurt him here.  

_"DUSTIN!_"  

The cry came from nowhere.  He thought he had heard it…but…had he really?  His eyes were closed…he heard the voice real faint, as though it didn't really exist.  

No He thought, as he drew the warm darkness around him once more.  It didn't exist…only this darkness exists.  But then the voices started whispering to him, and wouldn't leave him alone.  

_'Don't…you can't leave him.  Not yet.'_

Him…?  Who's him?  He felt like he wanted to swat the voices away with his hand, but as he tried to move his arm to do so, he realized that he _couldn't_.  He could feel his body, but he couldn't _move_ it.  And he began to panic.  He wanted to be able to thrash around and try to get out of the darkness then-but he _couldn't_.  

And suddenly, images started to come through to him-fast and quick, so quickly that he almost didn't catch some of the ones that flew through his mind, making him more and more aware of what was _really_ going on…that he wasn't safe, that this warm darkness was really holding him _captive_.  That he _wasn't_ supposed to be here…and again, he heard the voices, and kept on hearing them as the images flashed through his mind, making it hurt…hurt bad.  He wanted to scream, to cry out-and felt like he couldn't.  

Images of a dark haired, dark skinned young man…

When they'd first kissed…his startled expression after he had toppled off his bike during a race when another motorcross racer had rammed into him, determined to take him out of the race-well, he had.  But _he_ had been there-watching it all, and he had been the first one to get to him.  He'd been on the verge of unconsciousness when he had placed his lips upon his own.  

Later when he had asked him about it, asked him if he had been dreaming the whole thing, he had said yes-but a few days later, he had come to work, wanting to talk to him.  They'd gone out back, and he'd told him that when he had said yes-he had really meant to say no.  It had started to rain suddenly, drenching them both-and as he had been looking up at the dark rain clouds, _he_ had pulled him forward and kissed him again.  Telling him just how worried he had been when he had to be taken to the hospital, when the doctor's had said that he'd had a bad concussion and a sprained wrist that would heal with some time.  He hadn't been able to Ranger for awhile…and he'd had to stay in bed for a few days after that…he had always thought it weird that the other had always stopped in to check and see how he was doing-had even spent the first night when he'd come home from the hospital, saying that he didn't want him to be alone.  

Another flash image of when they'd been at a picnic with everyone, celebrating Blake's and Hunter's return…he'd been happy to see that Tori was happy once more-and wished that he could have her happiness-wished that they had the courage to tell everyone about _them_.  He'd taken him away from them…given the two of them some space from the others…kissing once, then again, and again…eventually the other Ranger's had to go looking for them, they'd been gone for so long.  

He remembered bringing _him_ roses-dark red ones-for his birthday, when he himself had completely forgotten about it…and then later that night, treating him to dinner…and a cuddle session on the couch at Ninja Ops, as that night he had made sure that Blake and Hunter were both out, and Cam had minded his business as he usually did…he couldn't have had it at his place-his parents would've flipped for sure-and they weren't really sure on how Shane's parents would react to them being together either.  But they had watched the movies that he'd rented the night before-all his favorites-and eventually falling asleep.  Cam hadn't woken them, and they'd stayed the night at Ops…of course his parents hadn't been too happy because he hadn't called them (they were _so_ overprotective half the time it drove him _crazy_) but they'd gotten over it…eventually.    

All he cared about was making _him_ happy.  

_'Remember what you're fighting for._'  Again, those damned voices-and more images flashing through his mind…couldn't they just leave him the hell alone?!?  

And suddenly he felt like he really couldn't breathe, he tried to, but he _couldn't_.  A light started to swarm around him, taking him away from the darkness…pulling him away from it, as he felt himself start to grow cold and the images started to fade away again.  And he _remembered_ what it was he was fighting for…

_Shane_.  

~***~

"Come on Dustin…_come on_, please!"  He felt like it had been an eternity-when in all reality, it had really only been a few minutes, if that.  

When Dustin started to cough up water, Shane let out a strangled cry of relief.  

"Thank god."  Shane murmured, as he turned Dustin over on his side so that he could dispel the water and wouldn't choke on it.  

After awhile, Dustin managed to roll over on his own, and Shane sighed happily when he was able to look into Dustin's dark brown, tired looking eyes.

"Dustin?"  He whispered, not believing that Dustin was actually _alive_.  His hand brushed across the brunette's forehead, brushing away some of the fallen bangs that had been plastered to his forehead from the rain.  

Dustin looked at him for a few seconds, before taking a small breath-and coughing afterwards, before responding.  

"Yeah…?"  

Shane leaned over and pulled his boyfriend up in a hug, careful not to hug him too tightly in case he was hurt, but close enough so that he could actually feel Dustin's heart beating, and his chest rising up and down with each shallow breath that he took.  

"What…happened…?"  Dustin asked quietly as he shivered suddenly and Shane shook his head, pulling away from their embrace long enough to place a gentle finger over his lips.  

"I'll explain as much as I can later.  Right now, we need to get out of this rain…we're both soaked to the bone, and I need to look you over and see if you're hurt anywhere…can you walk?"  Nodding at him, as Shane moved up and offered him a hand, Dustin rose unsteadily to his feet.  But the moment he seemed to gain any sense of balance, he slumped over into Shane's outstretched arms.

"You know…why don't I just carry you?  You really don't look so good."  He murmured softly as he swept the brunette off his feet, who struggled for a few minutes, saying that he could walk on his own-and then suddenly gave up.  While cold, Shane's body still radiated heat…and it was better then nothing.  

"You really don't _have_ to carry me."  Dustin whispered, as Shane only smiled softly at him.

"I know I don't _have_ to carry you…I _want_ to carry you."  The dark haired teen said, as Dustin unconsciously buried his head into his boyfriend's chest, and felt himself falling asleep-he suddenly felt _very tired_…

~***~

By the time Shane had found the cave, Dustin had been asleep for too long.  Shane knew he shouldn't have let him sleep, but with all that was going on at the moment, and the fact that he had been trying to find shelter for a better portion of the night, hadn't helped them all that much.  

He wasn't even sure if the cave he found at the moment, was safe or not.  He was still carrying Dustin, and his arms were now numb…from the cold, and from having carried Dustin for so long-even though the light brunette wasn't to heavy.  So now he sat Dustin down against the rock wall next to the cave, trying to get him to wake…Dustin had stopped shivering after awhile, and Shane was hoping that his boyfriend hadn't gone into shock.  

"Dustin…Dustin, dude, come on wake up."  After gently shaking him for a few minutes, Dustin finally came to, looking at Shane groggily as he raised a hand and tried to rub some of the sleep from his eyes.

"Man…I've got the biggest headache."  He said with a groan, and Shane sighed, remembering when they had been on the cruise ship, that Blake had said something about Dustin smacking his head against the rail.  

"You might've had a concussion Dustin.  Probably comes with the territory…are you still cold?"  Dustin shook his head and Shane threw him a worried look.  

"I went numb a long time ago-your body heat helped some, but you really didn't have that much to begin with."  The brunette said, in a feeble attempt to make a joke and try to lighten their horrible situation, but earned a light cuff alongside the head from Shane.  

"Brat…"  He muttered, taking Dustin's playful stride.  "Be glad that you're probably injured or I would've smacked you harder-I'm going into check this cave out…_stay awake_, okay?"  All Dustin did was nod as he watched Shane disappear into the incredibly dark cave.  He didn't see why Shane felt as though he _had_ to check the cave…Dustin was, after all, the Child of Earth.  He could've just _asked_ him to feel _inside_ the cave.  He smirked to himself and shook his head lightly, then groaned as he brought up a hand to rub his temples.  That hadn't been such a good idea.  He was _really_ wishing for some Advil, or Tylenol even-_something_ to help the intense, throbbing pain in his head.  

A few seconds later, Shane came back looking quite sheepish.

"You know, I just realized something…"  And Dustin grinned as he made a motion toward the cave.

"Yeah, I know, you should've asked me-the cave's fine…nothing's lived in it for a very long time now.  It's safe."  Shane grumbled something underneath his breath, and all Dustin did was give him a wry grin as Shane reached down and helped him stand up…suddenly he felt nauseated and woozy as the world tilted around him and he groaned.  

"Shane…"  He whispered, and his boyfriend immediately tightened his grip a little big more securely around him, allowing him to lean more into him to keep his balance, and help him keep from falling down completely. 

"Tell me _exactly_ how you feel."  Shane whispered back as he half carried, half dragged Dustin into the cave and away from the rain.

"I feel…I feel…like I'm about to throw up."  Dustin murmured weakly and honestly, as Shane managed to get him down to his knees just in time as he started to heave up anything he had to eat the other day.  When he was finished, he moaned lightly as Shane pulled him away, and leaned up against the smooth surface of the cave, letting Dustin lean against him.  

"Dude, you're shivering again."  He said, pointing out something Dustin already knew as he weakly nodded his head.

"I know-I suddenly feel _really_ cold and not so good…not so good at all."  Shane frowned…Dustin wasn't getting sick on him again, was he?  And if he got sick _here_…but Shane had to put those thoughts aside.  If he panicked on Dustin, who already wasn't looking too good, then Dustin would definitely panic and freak out as well.  And that was something that he didn't think Dustin wanted-because he didn't want it to happen either.

"You might've swallowed too much sea water-you know how Tori is after a very long day at the beach, if she wipes out at the end of it?  Remember the time that we caught her retching after a really big wipe out, because she had also gotten water up her nose?"  Dustin laughed, and it was a laugh that Shane realized sounded much like a giggle.              He grinned, knowing that he didn't mind Dustin's giggling laugh-he always had thought it was cute.  Again, he felt Dustin shiver as his boyfriend huddled into him a little more, trying to get as close as he could get.

"You know, I think we need to at least get out of our wet shirts?  I wish we had blankets or something, but at the moment-"

"We don't."  Dustin said, cutting him off through chattering teeth.

"Shane…I think I'm going to throw up again."  And Shane allowed Dustin to maneuver enough away from him so that Shane could still hold onto him as he threw up once more on the sandy ground beneath them.  He continued to dry heave until minutes later, and when he was done, he was gasping for breath.  As he was being sick, Shane had managed to peel off his wet T-shirt, glad to get rid of it as it really was starting to become a nuisance, and turned to see Dustin weakly collapse against the wall.

"Remind me…next time…that Tori invites us on a trip…to _not agree to go_."  He mumbled, wiping his pale face with a trembling hand as Shane moved in and wrapped his arms around his trembling figure.

"I'm going to get your shirt off of you-trust me, you'll feel a little better without it on."  Shane whispered into his ear, as Dustin nodded and tried to help Shane peel off his own shirt as much as he could.  

But as his hands brushed across Dustin's bare skin, he frowned at the heat that radiated off of Dustin's body-and yet, Dustin was shaking as though he was freezing.  Shane inwardly groaned…was Dustin sick _again_?  But this time Dustin had a reason…he felt so bad for his boyfriend.  They were stranded in the middle of nowhere, and Dustin was feeling miserable once more.  

"I can see why you don't want to take anymore trips with Tori…Dustin, you're burning up again."  Dustin only weakly nodded his head, looking like he was ready to cry any minute.

"I know…I'm sorry…I'm sorry…"  He kept on apologizing over and over again, until Shane gently shushed him, bringing him close enough so that once again he was leaning up against his chest, his head resting against his bare shoulder.  

"Dustin, you've got nothing to be sorry about, trust me…just…try to calm down and relax, okay?"  Dustin nodded, feeling his eyes start to droop as sleep beckoned him-well, more like the thought of passing out on Shane beckoned him.  

"Dustin dude, you've got to stay with me, you've got to stay awake."  He heard Shane plead, and Dustin only coughed in response.

"I'm sorry Shane…"  He apologized once again before he felt his eyes slowly close and he fell limp against Shane's body.

TBC  

Quick AN:  **Hides and shields herself away from audience's evil glares**…I know…I know, I'm so _evil_ for leaving it there…don't kill me…_please_?  (Besides, if you kill me then you can't get the next chapter, so :P!  You have no choice but to keep me alive to find out what happens next!  **Evil maniacal laughter from authoress inserted here**)  

Ah, but this chapter was _so_ much fun for me to write!  **Major** Dustin _and_ Shane angst…wheeeeeeeee!  What fun!  (I know, I know, I'm a horrible awful person for doing such things to Dustin…*hides away again*…but I can't _help_ it!  It's too much fun to torture your favorite character…*whimpers*)  Hmmmm…what to do with the next chapter…hehe…I so want to give you guys a hint of what's going to happen in the next chapter…and I'm wondering if I should do that or if I should torture you guys even more and make you wait…*evil smile*…ah…but I'm in a generous mood…sooooooooooooo….

Next Chapter hints:  

Kelly finds out about the storm, and is frantically worried about Dustin, Shane, Blake, Hunter, Tori, and Cam and hopes they're okay.

Ah, and what the heck-we get started on yet another couple of Ranger's…but who are they? Now _that's_ what I'm not telling!!!  ^-~  But I'll be nice and give you a hint on _one_ of the characters: this **person** was on the team that showed up evil and working on Lothor's side, then disappeared and came back to help the Wind Ranger's fight Lothor and his evil goons.  (So now you've got a couple of possibilities here…but which one do you think I'll go with…?  ^-~)    


	4. StrandedHunterand Cam

Disclaimer: I don't own PRNS.  
  
Author's Notes: Wow...so many people are asking me for a Hunter/Cam chapter... I seriously thank you guys for all the support you're giving me. Really in the past I've only done slash with anime stuff...so this is my first time doing it in a different section that's not anime, and I'm just excited that you guys are liking this so much! So all you reviewers out there are just awesome! Gives everyone who's reviewed so far a big hug. I had a bit of a writer's block on this chapter, but now I think I've got everything figured out, so it should all go pretty smoothly after this! And I'm sorry for what I had to do to Dustin! Hides once more behind Blake and Hunter and receives a glare from Dustin...my protectors...they've got no choice but to protect me! (Since I'm the one in charge of what happens to them in this story! :P receives glares from the three boys, and then smiles sweetly at them in return...but of course, if you three are good, then you'll have nothing to worry about...sees looks of relief from all three- especially Dustin) Hehe, don't mind me, I'm just having a sugar rush...so, let's get on with this chapter already...  
  
Rating: PG13  
  
Warning: Contains slash/yaoi so if you don't like the thought of male/male pairings, then I suggest that you leave now or forever hold your peace- you've been for warned. :P  
  
Pairings: Blake/Tori, Hunter/Cam, Shane/Dustin  
  
Replies to Reviewers:  
  
Prinzessin- Ask and ye shall receive! I have the feeling you'll like this chapter. Hehe...well, it seems as though you've found a way to communicate with me! Just leave me notes (uh...or should I say demands maybe -) like the one you left me in Searching and Finding...(along with that cliffhanger and evil short chapter...:P) - I'm in such a Hunter/Dustin mood at the moment though that this was actually a hard chapter for me to write!!! Sighs...what am I going to do with myself? (Can I PLEASE have more Searching and Finding now? Whimpers pathetically I updated...gives author infamous puppy dog eyed look ) Oh, and can I make a request, please, please? Can you by any chance do anything to start 'Waiting For You?' Gotta love those Dustin centered fics, and that one sounds so plot worthy!!! Okay, I'm done now. -  
  
Gundam Nymph- Your review was so incredibly sweet! Thank you! Hugs Gundam Nymph There's some Hunter/Cam moments in here. Not a whole lot, but as the fic goes on there will be more, have no fear! 'I thought, and was kind of hoping, that Dustin really wasn't getting sick again and they might use 'other' means to get warm. yeah, yeah, I know. I'm a hentai. LOL The SlashWorld corrupted me. :P :P' Trust me...the part I really wanted to put there, I don't think that ff.net would've allowed me to in a heart beat...see, my original thought was for Dustin to get sick, and get the fever...and the chills...and well, I'll let you go on with your own imagination on THAT one. But being the good author that I am, I stayed within ff.net boundaries...heh, and you're not the only one who the SlashWorld corrupted! But once you're in, I swear to you you'll stay for a very LONG while...possibly a lifetime...-  
  
Tsukino Akume- So here is the next chapter of Shipwrecked as I promised for you. And can I say again that I totally loved your update on Fight To Keep You? And I'm also working on Different Journey's too...no worries! I FINALLY have somewhere to go on that and aren't stuck on it anymore! Yippee! I don't honestly know how I do the Shane/Dustin fluffy angst either...shrugs...I guess it might just come naturally to me? - Hehe...oh what a devious mind can do. If you think that you liked the last chapter, wait until the next couple come up...and yes, I completely do agree with you on Dustin's family background...it seems like something Dustin would almost want to hide sometimes, know what I mean?  
  
Angelic Agony- Well...at least you no longer want to kill me! I feel safer now! steps out from behind Blake and Hunter's Thunder Shield Hugs author. I don't know how I could do that to Dustin...there's just something appealing about seeing your favorite character tortured...well, at least for me anyway- (because then there's always really big fluffy moments afterward...-) no worries though, Shane's going to take really good care of him, I promise. And here's the update for ya-enjoy!  
  
Bjvision- Everyone requested the same thing...sighs. I guess I had no choice but to comply or face a mob of mad reviewers...heh...--;; actually though, with what everyone wanted for this chapter was what I was already planning on doing, so...it's all good! And no worries, as I told Angelic Agony above...Dustin will be well taken care of. (You don't really think I'd kill of my favorite character, right? -)  
  
CamFan4Ever- Can't...BREATHE! gasps for air as CamFan finally let's go...just...this time hug a little LESS tightly, kay' dude? As Hunter says in Return of Thunder part 3-I kind of need to breathe a little bit here! - But no worries! Here's some Hunter and Camness for you...and I can't really help it sometimes on the cliffhangers-they're my specialty! (What can I say, I learned from the best...-) Oh...before I forget...Hands CamFan key to the Cam/Hunter gate...enjoy! And do feel free to pass it around...  
  
Blake-Tori88- Bows deeply thank you, thank you very much! Just keep on scrolling down and you'll see who I've got up next...although by now I suppose I've made it a dead giveaway...sighs-it's so hard to keep a good secret on ff.net these days. Ah, well...that just means that you can look forward to what's coming next chapter! -  
  
Shipwrecked  
  
Author: Angel Spirit  
  
Chapter IV: Stranded-Hunter...and Cam  
  
"Hunter. Hunter, wake up."  
  
Someone was calling out his name. And he did not want to obey their command. He felt someone touching his shoulder, shaking him as gently as possible-as though hoping that the small motion would cause him to open his eyes.  
  
Fat chance of that happening. Hunter Bradley thought to himself, as he groaned inwardly. His whole body hurt. He felt like he couldn't move...as though a bunch of Kelzacks were holding him down-or worse, by one of Lothor's electric hits that wouldn't let go.  
  
"Hunter, come on...Hunter, you're scaring me, I need you to wake up! Please?!?" The voice was sounding desperate now. It didn't sound like Blake's however, unless if Hunter had water in his ears. That caused him to frown as he clearly remembered...  
  
Though, as he was remembering what happened, his eyes immediately shot open, and he groaned as he moved a hand to quickly cover his eyes as the sun nearly blinded him. He heard a sigh of relief off to his left side, and when he felt like he was able too, he moved his head a little in that direction, completely taken aback at whom it was that had been calling out to him. It really wasn't Blake...so that meant that he'd broken his promise to his little brother about not letting go of him when Blake couldn't hold onto the railing of the ship anymore.  
  
He suddenly felt a slight pain in his chest, and he knew what caused it, as it had happened plenty of times before whenever he had felt like he had let Blake down-guilt.  
  
"Are you alright? Come on Hunter, say something to me...please?" Hunter could only shake his head as he attempted to sit up. Strong arms wrapped around him, arms stronger then Hunter had thought that they would be as those arms helped him to sit so that he was leaning up against that person. When he finally felt as though he had his thoughts and emotions under control enough, he licked his dry lips.  
  
"Cam? What in the hell are you doing here?" He rasped out, surprised at how strange his voice sounded-like he'd been yelling at a concert or something. Cam sighed and shook his head...and Hunter realized quickly that he was missing his glasses.  
  
"I blame this all on Tori." The dark haired teen murmured as he continued to check Hunter over.  
  
"Feel anything broken? You look a little wiped out." He asked, as Hunter only shrugged, and winced wishing that he hadn't done that. It reminded him just how much he was hurting.  
  
"Well, if you fell overboard a ship during a storm like the one we had the other night, then you'd look and feel wiped out too." Hunter muttered, suddenly feeling a bit irritated. Maybe it was because he was really wishing that the person who had woken him up had been Blake, and not Cam. Cam was supposed to have been evacuated-safe and sound. And Blake...now he wouldn't know...  
  
"Blake...have you seen him anywhere?" Cam only shook his head looking straight into Hunter's dark blue orbs with a deep look of regret.  
  
"No-I haven't seen him at all...and trust me, I've scoped out this place as much as I could. Can you move? We need to get you out of the water-you're lucky I found you at all." It was only after Cam said this, that Hunter realized that he was still very much in the water-well, half of his body was anyway.  
  
His body was stuck in between what looked like two rock boulders, but as Cam helped him to stand he noticed that the area surrounding them was nothing but rock.  
  
He stood shakily, not quite sure if he could actually stand on his own and grateful that Cam had a tight grip on him, and wasn't looking like he was going to let Hunter fall over anytime soon-because that's what Hunter felt like doing. He felt really, really tired. Like the way one did after spending the whole day in the sun at the beach-or most of the time in his case, after he'd spent all day long training at the track. He felt like he'd gotten run over by a bunch of dirt bikes.  
  
He held a hand to his forehead, and started to gently rub it with his fingers, causing Cam to send him a look of concern.  
  
"Have a headache or something?" Hunter nodded as slowly as he could without actually nodding as he groaned while he straightened up, as he had been bending over slightly.  
  
"I hurt all over." He admitted, and Cam flashed him a small smile.  
  
"You've probably been lying in that position I found you in too long. I didn't want to move you until you woke up because I wasn't sure if you were hurt at all." Cam said softly, and Hunter only sighed.  
  
"So where are we?" He asked timidly, as Cam only shook his head, still not letting go of Hunter-and Hunter didn't mind once so ever.  
  
"I've got no idea...no answer for once. All I know is that we're on some kind of very big-actually huge from what I've seen so far-island. And also from what I've seen so far-no civilization." Hunter groaned.  
  
"So...you're saying that we're stranded, right dude?" Cam nodded.  
  
"Right. As much as I hate to admit that, I think you're definitely right." Hunter paused for a moment as they had started to trek away from where Cam had found him before he glanced around the area.  
  
"How...how long did it take you to find me Cam? From the way you're sounding like, it sounded like you didn't arrive on this island anywhere near where I was." He said, and Cam admitted that he was right.  
  
"I was about a day away from you. So really it's been a night and a day for you since...well...you know." Now Hunter really felt like he wanted to hurt someone. Not Cam, but someone-at the moment he actually wanted Kelzacks to arrive...they always made good punching bags when there weren't any around to use. But somehow Hunter knew that no Kelzacks were going to arrive anytime soon. If Cam didn't know where they were-then the chances of Lothor might not knowing where they were, were probably high...very high. And as he glanced down at his morpher, he realized that he was right-it was busted-beyond repair it looked like.  
  
Cam caught him looking at his morpher and he also showed him his own- strapped to his wrist, looking very much like Hunter's did.  
  
"I can try to repair them...but I doubt I'll be successful. I'm not even sure with as far away as we are, if they'll go into self repair mode." He said, as though reading Hunter's mind.  
  
Well Hunter thought as he looked down to the ground for a moment, feeling completely lost. There goes any hope in the Power Ranger department-or Cyber Cam finding us...we're officially screwed.   
  
He must've said part of that out loud, because Cam sighed heavily-and agreed with him.  
  
"You're absolutely right. But at least it's not raining anymore-I'll be very surprised if you don't come down with the pneumonia or something with as long as you were in the water and the rain and all. Here's hoping you don't." Hunter nodded, agreeing with him. That was something he didn't want to experience here.  
  
"So what do we do now?" He asked, glancing around him-nothing but rock, rock...and more rock lay ahead of them.  
  
"We continue to walk until we find some form of shelter. And then when we do that, we...I don't know." For once, Hunter was shocked. Cam was admitting that he didn't know what to do for once-and normally; Cam always had an idea as to how to get out of trouble.  
  
"Looks like we're going to be stuck here." Hunter murmured, not really liking the idea as he eventually got his strength back and started walking on his own-even though his body still ached, feeling like he'd been slammed into something. He didn't want to tell Cam that. Both of them had enough to worry about now and Hunter didn't want Cam to worry about how his body was feeling at the moment when there was nothing they could do about it.  
  
"I...I just wish that there was someway that I could find out about Blake..." Hunter managed to admit, as Cam put a reassuring arm on his shoulder.  
  
"I wouldn't be surprised if Blake's somehow okay. Who knows, maybe we'll find him somewhere on this blasted island-it's huge. He's strong Hunter." The blonde nodded and pushed away bangs that were starting to get into his eyes.  
  
"I know he is...but...I...I let go of him Cam. I promised him I wouldn't-no offense but I was kind of hoping that it was him calling my name out instead of you. All I want to know is if he's okay." He said softly, still filled with guilt-and when Cam glanced at him, he saw that guilt in his eyes.  
  
He wanted to reassure him, but he wasn't sure how. He didn't really know what it felt like to worry about someone so much, because he was an only child himself. The only person who he could worry about was his father really, but his father was miles away at home in Blue Bay Harbor. Safe and sound. So he couldn't really tell Hunter that he understood how he was feeling, because he couldn't.  
  
Well, he could understand a little of it-Tori, Dustin, and Shane...he wasn't sure what happened with those three and they were close enough like family to him. And even Blake...he'd even been starting to let his shields down around the Thunder Brother's as well. He just prayed to god that they were all somehow okay.  
  
"Worrying about everyone isn't going to solve our problem at the moment Hunter," he said finally, trying to choose his words carefully. The last thing he needed, was an angry Hunter not wanting to talk to him or cooperate, as he knew that sometimes, Hunter could be that way. He didn't want that now. Hunter was the only other person on this damned island that he had found. As much as he knew he'd hate it, Hunter was the only company he'd have for awhile.  
  
But that might not be so bad a sly voice inside his mind told him as playfully as it could. You've always had a crush on him...since you met him that day...you've always thought he was cute, and wanted to spend some 'alone' time with him. So now's your chance...you just might get to spend the rest of your days with him!  
  
Cam inwardly groaned at the voice that teased him, and shook his head to clear it. He squeezed his eyes shut, hoping that maybe when he opened them, this would all go away and it would be a dream. He'd wake up in the cabin on the ship, listening to Hunter's soft snores or Blake's gentle murmuring as he'd roll over in his sleep...or maybe he'd even wake up back at Ninja Ops, safe and sound-the whole cruise ordeal being nothing but one horrible, awful nightmare. He knew he shouldn't have accepted that invitation of Tori's-it had all been too good to be true.  
  
And if he ever saw his blonde friend again, he'd hurt her. Well, not really hurt her, but maybe he'd just give her the silent treatment-like for the rest of his life.  
  
If he ever saw Tori again.  
  
The thought made him go numb inside and his mind phased out as he and Hunter continued to stumble along the rocky terrain. They needed to find some sort of shelter. Preferably before nightfall...  
  
Shane opened his eyes a little to see that the storm had stopped, and that the sun was actually shining-it looked like morning had come at last.  
  
And he sighed in relief. The past two nights had been really rough on him- but more so on Dustin then on him. Now Shane was hungry-no, scratch that starving, and he wanted something to eat-now. But the problem was, was that there was nothing to eat.  
  
He hadn't wanted to leave Dustin's side, as he'd pretty much been coming and going in and out of unconsciousness. His breathing was still a bit ragged, and when he coughed it made Shane wince at the raspy hardened sound. He knew that as much as he didn't want to leave Dustin at the moment it was necessary-if they were to survive, he was going to have to go out and explore a little bit more of the area.  
  
It meant that he'd have to wake Dustin to tell him he was leaving-and he was positive that Dustin probably didn't want him to leave. He knew that he wouldn't want to be left alone if he had been the one in Dustin's situation. And a part of him wanted to be in Dustin's situation. Lately, it seemed like all the bad things had been happening to the light brunette he now fully considered his boyfriend.  
  
When Dustin suddenly groaned and shifted, Shane seized the opportunity and gently stopped the other from rolling onto his side.  
  
"Hang on there Dustin...can you wake up for a few minutes?" He asked, whispering softly as Dustin coughed a few times before opening his eyes a little and managing to find Shane's face and looked him straight in the eyes. Shane held in a breath when he saw how bright and feverish Dustin's dark brown eyes really looked.  
  
"What?" Dustin managed to breath out, and another round of coughing followed as Shane helped him sit up enough so that he could get more air into his chest.  
  
"I need to go for just a little while okay? I've got to see what's around this area and maybe collect some firewood and anything that looks edible...will you be okay alone?" He hated asking that question, but he also knew that what he had to do had to be done. Dustin managed to nod his head, as he licked his lips.  
  
"Yeah dude...I think I'll be alright-I'm probably just going to sleep-my body feels like lead. Can you...can you maybe find some water or something drinkable?" Dustin knew that it would probably be an impossible task, but he saw Shane nod his head anyway as he gently swept away the hair that had fallen into Dustin's eyes, lightly dampened with sweat from the fever and chills that probably racked Dustin's lean frame.  
  
"I'll try, I'll do my best. I should hopefully be back around mid day." All Dustin could manage was a nod as he felt his eyes slowly droop shut and he tried to get comfortable as Shane slowly headed out of the cave, only looking back once before he continued on.  
  
Though as Shane left, before Dustin fell completely back into a dark oblivion, he thought of what a dismal situation they really were in...  
  
"Ugh...how much further?" Hunter grumbled, wincing as he took another step. Normally he wasn't that much of a whiner when it came to hiking and extreme sports-but they'd been hiking through tough terrain for most of the day, and it wasn't getting any easier.  
  
"I don't know Hunter-the same as what I replied with the last...oh five minutes or so ago that you asked me?" Cam said back feeling a bit irritated himself. The bugs had taken a liking to him, and he'd already felt like he'd been bit a million times over now...and probably had bites over bites from the mosquitoes that swarmed around them. Hunter wasn't doing much better then Cam either.  
  
"Where's bug repellent when you need it?" They both sighed; knowing the answer to that question-they had nothing. And they wouldn't have anything either for a while, not until they knew this island as well as they needed to.  
  
Hunter inwardly groaned. Cam was usually into the map finding and other finding of stuff department-but now they had no computers to help them, no scrolls...and now they also had no Ranger Powers either.  
  
"Well, if I had a spirit to guide me that went with my power, I know I'd sure use it now." Cam murmured, but as he was just the Samurai Ranger, he couldn't really contact the elements that Tori, Shane, and Dustin could. Hunter only shrugged when Cam looked at him with the questioning glance that he was able to read.  
  
"I'm a Thunder Ninja Cam...we can't do that kind of stuff either. So I guess we're both in the dark, and...wait a minute..." Hunter felt a shiver running through him and he looked up at the sky to see dark clouds in the horizon. Suddenly, he found if he concentrated on the clouds hard enough, he could actually see the lightning coursing through them, and actually hear the Thunder as though he were right in the thick of it all.  
  
He suddenly felt dizzy, and saw the world start to spin around him as black dots started to haze through his vision. Hunter thought he briefly heard someone calling out to him...and then dismissed it as the world started to tip and turn. Feeling strong arms catch him, Hunter allowed himself to slowly come back to reality as he blinked several times, realizing that Cam had been the one calling his name over and over again, stopping when he saw that Hunter was actually back to normal-well, as normal as normal was for him anyway.  
  
"God, don't scare me like that Hunter!" Cam scolded, as Hunter reached a shaky hand up and brushed back fallen bangs.  
  
"Sorry Cam...um...I think there's a storm heading our way or something." He murmured, so quietly that Cam almost didn't hear it, so he tilted his head and looked at him as though he had just spoken gibberish to him.  
  
"Wait a minute...back up and say that again Hunter." Hunter sighed.  
  
"I said I think there's a storm coming-another one...one just as bad as the last one that made the boat we were on do what it did." Cam bit his lower lip.  
  
"How did you know this Hunter?" The blonde he still held in his arms shrugged and sighed irritably.  
  
"I don't know! Okay, I don't know! One minute I was here and the next minute I felt like I was surrounded by a mass of very dark clouds, and lightning was splitting the air, and..." But before he could continue any further, Cam held up a hand to stop his rambling as he held a light smile on his face. Hunter never quite realized before how cute Cam actually looked without his glasses-wait scratch that-handsome was more like it.  
  
"Hunter...you and Blake are Thunder Rangers...so maybe instead of being able to use the elements like Dustin and the other's can, you can feel them! Which we can actually use to our advantage now!"  
  
Hunter groaned as Cam looked overly excited about the whole feeling elements thing. For him, it gave him nothing but a really bad headache.  
  
"Do I have to have it?" He grumbled, massaging his temples as Cam grinned.  
  
"Well, at least we know when it's going to storm...which could be very helpful-too bad dad's not here to help you figure out how to actually focus and get it so that it doesn't slam you every time it happens to fall upon you." Hunter groaned.  
  
"Isn't that what you're supposed to be here for?" Cam chuckled as he helped Hunter up.  
  
"No-remember, I'm a Ranger now just like the rest of you. Come on, if it's going to storm soon, we'd better find some kind of shelter." Again with the shelter bit. But Hunter knew that Cam was right-they needed somewhere they could stay dry-Hunter wasn't too concerned with the warmth part of it- they had each other after all.  
  
Suddenly, finding shelter and cuddling up next to Cam for the rest of the night sounded rather...pleasant.  
  
And that was the only thought that managed to keep him going for the rest of the day.  
  
Kelly was not a happy person at the moment.  
  
But of course you wouldn't be happy if someone came to tell you that your employees were gone...drowned maybe, stranded somewhere...who knew...?  
  
And it was all because of that really weird storm that they'd had a little while ago.  
  
She sighed...why did she have to be everybody's emergency contact person? Whatever happened to just putting down a family member, even though the forms didn't say to put down a family member? They just didn't want you to put down a family member so that way the family member wouldn't flip out on the phone or at the door depending on how desperate the situation was.  
  
And this, could be counted as desperate.  
  
Because now she was in charge of calling Tori's, Dustin's, and Shane's parents. She wasn't too sure about Cam or Hunter or Blake...from the sounds of it, it seemed as though Hunter and Blake didn't have parents-or so that was what she got from the very strong hint that Dustin had dropped at her when she'd hired Blake and Hunter onto Storm Chargers.  
  
So now she was sitting in her office, staring at the slightly cloudy, breezy day outside trying to muster up the courage needed to call everyone's families and tell them what happened.  
  
It was then that she got the idea to call Dustin's dad...she'd met him before when Dustin had brought him by the shop because he'd been curious as to where Dustin had spent most of his time during the day and early evening, and he'd seemed like a fairly reasonable man.  
  
It was only the part of having to tell him that the six teens could only be just missing and that they were still trying to look for them on any island where the boat had gone down, that was going to be the hard part. She fingered the business card that Dustin's father had given her that day...it had been one of those 'just because' reasons.  
  
"Workaholic." Kelly muttered under her breath. Only serious workaholics handed out their business cards to anyone and everyone-no wonder why Dustin had told her once that he really didn't know his dad all that well. So whenever Dustin would come into work and say that his dad finally had a day off from work-which was very rare and hadn't happened since somewhere around the Christmas season last year-Kelly would give him that day off. Actually, scratch that...she'd given him that day off, for he'd come into the store so excited the previous night when he had found out that his father had taken the day off from work just to 'hang out' with his son.  
  
"At least he has good intentions...let's see how badly he flips out on me when I call him with this newest information...god...you guys why do you constantly do this to me?" She whispered as she picked up the phone and dialed the work number on the business card.  
  
She didn't know how to explain it, but deep down she knew that they weren't dead...she had the feeling that they were alive and well-somewhere. Where though, was something no one knew...and she knew that the coast guard would only search for so long before giving up on them. And she was never a quitter-she wasn't going to give up on her friends that easily. She'd only met Cam a few different times, but she'd always liked him and thought he was just as easy going as the rest of them.  
  
Finally someone picked up on the other end and Kelly almost groaned when she got a receptionist. But at this point in time, she'd be patient-and indeed when she asked for Mr. Brooks, she was put on hold...for quite some time. She drummed her fingers on her desk as she waited...and waited...and waited some more, glancing at her watch and was surprised to see that nearly a half an hour had gone by since she'd called for Dustin's father. She had business to deal with out in the store, as she had Jesse and Samantha covering shifts for Blake and Hunter now...but they weren't as experienced as those two were.  
  
And she hadn't told them that Blake, Hunter, and the other's were missing yet either.  
  
Finally when she was about to hang up, he actually answered the phone, and Kelly braced herself for the explosion of anger that was bound to happen.  
  
"Mr. Brooks, hi, this is Kelly calling from Storm Chargers-Dustin's boss?" She said, hoping that with that much information the man would remember who she was.  
  
"Oh, yes...Kelly, hi...is...something wrong with my son, is that why you're calling me?" He asked, sounding very concerned and serious at the same time-at least the man cared for his son, that much Kelly knew as she sucked in a small breath and then slowly let it out.  
  
"Um...well...Mr. Brooks, there's really no easy way for me to tell you this-but you know the trip your son went on with Tori and the other's?" She could vision him nodding on the other side of the phone.  
  
"Yes, I do. Dustin sounded quite excited when he was telling me and his mother about it. Why?"  
  
"Well, I just got a call-a call...because I guess they all put me down as an emergency contact...god...Mr. Brooks, I'm so sorry to tell you this but the cruise ship they were on went down in the storm the other night-they're calling it a 'freak accident' or something of the likes-everyone made it off safely-everyone except Tori, Shane, Hunter, Blake, Cam, and...and Dustin. Mr. Brooks, I'm sorry-your son has been reported as missing..."  
  
From Mr. Brooks end of the line, Kelly heard nothing but an eerie silence.  
  
TBC 


End file.
